


20 Minute Fictober19: Lukanette Strong

by verfound



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: 20 minute fics, Adrienette is Never End Game, Aged-Up Character(s), Alya is Magic, Angst, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Ch 4 - Major Character Death, Ch26 - Character Death, Ch26 - Character Death with a Happy-ish Ending, Ch26 - TBW, Ch26 - Time Travel Implied to Prevent Character Death, Ch27 - A Wedding, Ch28 - Gamer Mari, Ch6 - Drunk Mari, Childhood Friends, Complete, Domestic Fluff, Eloping, Endgame Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, F/M, Family Fluff, Fictober 2019, First Anniversary, First Kiss, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, I like to kill people, Kwami Shenanigans, Kwami Swap, Luka is Unexpectedly Good at Video Games, Luka's not sure what was in that drink (but he'll have another), Mari is a Sore Loser, Nino's Got Dirt, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Papa Stone, Prompt Fic, S3 finale, S3 finale - vague spoilers (one line), Sleep Deprivation, So Luka is Gross, boys are gross, celebrity crushes, every month is Lukanette month if you ship hard enough, luka is a dork, pregnancy announcement
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-02
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2020-11-10 16:40:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 31
Words: 31,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20854949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/verfound/pseuds/verfound
Summary: Daily ficlets written for the Fictober event on Tumblr, written within 20 minutes, Lukanette-centric, in which: (10/30) Luka uses that tip to buy Marinette some fabric, but bumps into a familiar face at the fabric store.  (10/31) Luka is a Horror Movie Wuss. Marinette finds it adorable.





	1. 01 Oct: "It will be fun, trust me."

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jagged convinces them to go bungee jumping. Without the suit to protect her, Marinette is a little terrified.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “It will be fun, trust me.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Jagged Stone/Penny Rolling (BG)  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: So in my mind, this was happening when they’re older, Luka’s on tour with Jagged, and Mari’s travelling with them (probably as their designer). Jagged probably saw a flyer in an airport terminal and went, “GUYS WE TOTALLY GOTTA DO THIS.” (I really wasn’t going to do another monthly challenge – I’ve got at least two chapter fics and a bunch of one shots I’ve been puttering around on after August – but I really liked these prompts. So I figured twenty minute writing exercises won’t kill me, right? Keep that muscle stretching?)

The phrase _famous last words_ was echoing through Marinette’s head in a playful, mocking sing-song that sounded suspiciously like Alya. She peeked over the ledge and gulped.

“It will be fun,” Jagged had said. “Trust me.”

Oh, she trusted him, all right. About as far as she could throw him – which was a considerable distance. She had chucked Chat Noir halfway across the city and into the Seine countless times, after all, so she would know.

“Breathe,” Luka whispered into her ear. His arms, wrapped firmly around her shoulders, gave her a squeeze she supposed was supposed to be comforting, except it wasn’t really very comforting at all. Because despite his steady presence, she was still painfully aware of the fact that she was strapped to him with only a thick, stretchy cord and a harness. The harness wasn’t even connected to him – he had his own, it was just their feet that were connected to their own harnesses – and his arms were the only thing keeping her pressed to him. And she should feel safe – she always felt safe in his arms, she trusted him with her life – but none of that mattered. The training session that had been included with this asinine package didn’t matter. Watching Jagged and Penny get shoved off the bridge before them, Jagged’s exuberant hollers echoing through the canyon and ringing in her ears, didn’t matter.

Because all Marinette was aware of was the fact that she was about to get shoved off of a bridge with Luka, about to plummet forty nine meters towards the river below, with nothing but a thick, stretchy rope to save them from certain doom. Her Ladybug suit would not protect her should the rope snap. The comforting weight of her yoyo, ready to shoot out at a moment’s notice to save them from a painful death, was absent from her hand. Her hands fisted against Luka’s back, the fabric of his shirt bunching between her fingers, as she took another steadying breath. She didn’t think she could do this. She was going to be sick. She made more terrifying jumps plenty of times in her twenty years, but that had always been as _Ladybug._ Right now she was just Marinette, and just Marinette was scared _shitless_.

“Oh my God, that was amazing!” Jagged shouted as he ran up to them. Penny walked slower behind him, but she didn’t look nearly as green as she had been when the instructor had pushed them over. Her face was flushed with windburn and excitement.

“Mari, it was _incredible_,” she gasped as she reached them. Jagged nodded, bouncing like the excited child he was on the inside.

“Totally rock-n-roll, Marinette! What are you waiting for – go on, jump!” he cried. Luka chuckled, his hand rubbing soothing lines down her back.

“We had to wait for them to reset everything after your jump,” he said. He glanced down at her, and she swallowed. “And I think Mari’s having a slight case of cold feet.”

“What? No way!” Jagged gasped. “She’s the bravest girl I know – c’mon, Mari! You can totally do this!”

“Ready?” the instructor asked, grinning behind his sunglasses. The sun glinted off the lenses like a challenge, and Marinette swallowed again before she looked up at Luka. He smiled down at her, steady and constant as ever, and she pressed closer to him. She was sure her knuckles were white from how tightly she was clutching his shirt – she was amazed it hadn’t ripped yet. His eyebrows were raised in amusement, and she tilted her face up towards him.

The package had called it a _Lovers’ Leap_, after all.

“Let’s do this,” she said as he pulled back, her lips tingling from his kiss. Before she knew it they were on the edge of the bridge, where the railing had been cut away specifically for this purpose, and the instructor was shouting “THREE!” as he pushed them over the edge.

She could barely hear Luka’s excited _whoop_ over the rushing of the wind in her ears, and she hoped it also masked her terrified shriek in his own. She pressed her face into his chest, and she felt more than heard his laughter as he held her closer. Her stomach lurched as the bungee cord pulled taught and snapped them back into the air, and for a moment she was Ladybug, swooping through Paris’s skies on another afternoon patrol. Viperion was whispering that he loved her in her ear, his head tucked close against her own in the brief second they hung suspended in the air – and then they were free falling again, back towards the river, and somewhere in the process her screams had turned into pealing laughter.

It was over entirely too soon for something that felt like it had taken an eternity to pass. As they swung above the water, both still breathless with adrenaline and laughter, she found herself wondering if they could go again.

“I love you,” she shouted, her ears ringing from the wind and their screams and laughs. He grinned at her, and she snaked a hand up – down – to his head to pull him down – up – towards her mouth. The kiss was breathless and made all the better for how neither could stop laughing. When she pulled away, she screamed in delight. “I love you! Thank you for talking me into this!”

“I love you!” he shouted back, dipping towards her mouth again. The boat with the crew that was to help them down was approaching, but neither noticed. “So you trust me?”

“Always!” she cried. Her laughter turned manic as he kissed her again.

“Wanna marry me, then?” he murmured against her mouth as the crew reached them, their arms reaching up to steady their swinging. Her stomach was somewhere in the vicinity of her ears. She was experiencing that mid-air vertigo all over again.

“Yes,” she gasped. Neither really minded the crew laughing at them to stop kissing and let them get them down already.


	2. 02 Oct: "Just follow me, I know the area."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ladybug is blinded in an akuma attack. Viperion doesn't take it too well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Just follow me, I know the area.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K / G / All Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Rawr. I kinda had an idea, and it fought me, then the timer got me. Luka knows we all know he knows.

Ladybug stumbled as another explosion rocked the ground beneath her. Her arms flailed out, catching herself on what felt like a brick wall before she could hit the ground. She hit the wall instead, which was still painful, but not as bad as – say – slamming into the pavement. Manic laughter ran through the city behind her, echoing over Chat’s desperate cries asking where she had gone.

She leaned against the wall and groaned, doubt coiling around her mind. What was she going to do? What could she do? She –

“Ladybug!”

She jumped at Viperion’s voice, turning her head blindly in his direction. She felt gloved hands on her face, brushing her bangs back – a thumb rubbing beneath her eye. She heard the sharp intake of breath, the muttered curse. He had arrived to the battle too late to fix this. Defeating the akuma was their only hope, and she…

“I’m sorry,” he murmured, guilt twisting his voice. She shook her head.

“I was careless. I didn’t move fast enough. It’s not your fault,” she said. Accidents happened, even when they couldn’t afford them – it was part of the reason he bore the Snake Miraculous, after all. To give them second chances. His thumb brushed beneath her cloudy eyes again. She had seen the akuma’s other victims and knew her gaze had to match theirs: milky pale and unseeing. She reached up and laid her hand on his wrist, squeezing gently. “We’ll beat her, I’ll cast my Miraculous Cure, and everything will be fine.”

Whatever he was going to say was cut off by another explosion. He pulled her against his chest as debris rained down above them.

“We have to get you someplace safe,” he said. “Wait out the battle while Chat and I take her out.”

“No! I can still –” she tried to argue, but she felt him shaking his head above her own.

“You can’t see, Ladybug!” he cried. “How can you fight?”

…she couldn’t. They both knew it. She thumped her head against his chest in frustration and groaned. He stepped away and slipped his fingers though her own.

“Just follow me,” he said, tugging her after him. “I know the area.”

– V –

Later, after the akuma had been purified, her Cure cast, and Chat had reamed her out for her recklessness (which was rich, coming from him), she stood with Viperion in an alley near the Liberty. He hadn’t stopped smiling at her since they’d left Chat near the center of Paris.

“What?” she finally asked, attaching her yoyo to her hip. He chuckled and reached out, pressing a hand to her cheek.

“Nothing,” he said after a moment. “Just…was afraid I’d never see these again.”

She felt her face warm and prayed it wasn’t as red as her suit.

“Don’t you have a girlfriend?” she asked quickly, folding her arms over her chest and looking towards the street beyond the alley. He chuckled again and shook his head.

“Scales rest,” he said, holding up a hand to catch a tired Sass. He handed him a hardboiled egg (he had stopped questioning a while ago how the transformation managed to preserve the eggs – that was Sass’s gross, magical secret to keep). The kwami hissed his thanks before munching on the treat. Luka glanced up at her, and she felt her heart flutter. “I do at that. Was afraid I wouldn’t see her gorgeous eyes again, too.”

Her face was definitely matching her suit. Sass smirked at her behind his egg, and she rubbed her finger against his head.

“Well –” she started, but before she could finish he was kissing her. It took her brain a second to catch up, to remember that _Ladybug_ shouldn’t be kissing _Luka_ and _Luka_ definitely shouldn’t instigate a kiss with _Ladybug_, but once the shock kicked in she pulled away from him. “L-Luka!”

“Sorry,” he said, grinning helplessly at her. She could hear Sass’s hissing laughs between them. “Just…I was scared, when I saw you there and realized what had happened. I was scared, Marinette.”

Her breath hitched in her throat. He wasn’t supposed to know…


	3. 03 Oct: "Now?  Now you listen to me?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka knocks some packages over, and Marinette mocks his pain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Now? Now you listen to me?”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: I don’t even know what this one is. Fluff, that’s what it is. Tooth-rotting fluff (and GLITTER). (I needed it after today. It started with our lead worker finding a dead snake behind my large kettle and ended with me inside said kettle because apparently thirty cans of soup, eight gallons of milk, seventy pounds of chicken, and fourteen pounds of parmesan cheese does not make for a happy kettle. Or happy students. Or a happy Ver. You know what I was when I left work today? Gross. That’s what I was. I was GROSS.)

“Luka, wait, no –!”

Marinette watched in horror as the pile of boxes tipped precariously to the side. Luka tried his best to grab them, but the next thing either of them knew the boxes had crashed to the floor of their living room with a tinkling, pattering clamor. Thousands of beads scattered across the floor, and Luka was quick behind them as he overbalanced and his chin connected solidly with the hardwood – which wouldn’t have been pleasant anyhow but was made worlds worse by the beads jabbing into his skin. Even worse, as the last of the pattering tapered out, the final box tipped and a container of glitter rolled out and broke open on his head. He laid there, his eyes scrunched shut against the offending crafts supplies, and took a deep breath.

…which promptly set him into a coughing fit as the glitter went up his nose.

Marinette’s snort echoed within the cup of her hands, still slapped over her mouth to hide the horrified smile curling her lips. He pushed himself up, wincing as the beads cut into his palms, and shot a half-hearted glare her way. He was _trying_ to be serious, she knew, but she could see the helpless grin fighting to curl the edges of his mouth. He vigorously rubbed at his fringe, sending a shower of purple glitter into his lap, and he smirked as he brought his hand away to inspect the damage.

“Huh,” he said. “Purple’s more Juleka’s color.”

“Oh my gosh, are you ok?” she asked, biting at her lip to stifle her snickers. He rolled his eyes and shrugged.

“Nothing a good shower can’t fix,” he said. He looked about at the chaos surrounding him. “And a vacuum.”

Her snickers turned into a choked laugh, and he tried to glare at her again.

“You mock my pain?” he asked, and it was the final straw. She fell back against the wall, jostling the table just enough that another canister of glitter rolled out of the box and exploded in his lap. She didn’t even want to think about how much money had just been wasted in the accident.

“Life is pain,” she gasped between cackles, and he rolled his eyes as he tried to brush the green glitter off his jeans. His knee looked radioactive from where it showed through the rips.

“Now? Now you listen to me?” he griped, standing up and walking over to her. She squealed as he laid his arms against the wall and leaned in, effectively trapping her. He tipped her chin up and grinned down at her. “How dare you use _Princess Bride_ against me. I’m hurt. Insulted. Offended, even.”

“Luka, you’re getting glitter all over me!” she laughed, pushing lightly against his chest. He swooped down and pressed his lips to hers, swallowing her giggles.

“Then you’ll just have to join me in the shower, once we get this cleaned up,” he murmured against her lips, and her next laugh sounded breathy in her ears.

“You taste like glitter,” she snickered, stealing another kiss. “It’s disgusting.”

“You shouldn’t have piled that many boxes on a corner,” he said. “And I thought I taste delicious.”

“Stooooop,” she whined, lightly thumping her fist against his chest as she started giggling all over again. “You’re impossible!”

“I’m shiny,” he said, shaking his head like a dog and dousing her in purple glitter. She squealed again, and he laughed before kissing her cheek. He stepped back when she shoved at him and surveyed the carnage around them.

“I’ll get the vacuum,” she groaned. “I am not thinking about the waste. I’m not.”

“Mari,” he called, and she paused as he grabbed her wrist. He tugged her back to him for another kiss. Her face scrunched up as glitter got in her mouth. “I love you. So much.”

“I love you,” she sighed, brushing more glitter from his bangs. “Shiny boy.”


	4. 04 Oct: "I know you didn't ask for this."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette is going to kill Gabriel Agreste. Adrien thinks he'd like to help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “I know you didn’t ask for this.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien Agreste  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: Angst. Major character death and murder plots. Y’know, I started these thinking, “Hey, I want to play around with aged-up Lukanette fluff.” When did my default setting kick in. (Ugh. I blame 911 on this, guys. I watched Monday’s ep before writing this, and it influenced things.)

“I’m going to kill your father.”

Adrien felt his blood chill. Not because of her words, not necessarily, but maybe because of her tone. The flat edge of her voice. The dull sincerity that let him know in no uncertain terms that Marinette Dupain-Cheng had every intention of killing Gabriel Agreste.

…he wondered if she’d let him help.

“I’m sure a line’s forming by this point,” he said. His voice was just as flat as her own as he stared numbly at his phone. At the obituary page glaring back at him.

There were so many names…

“I know you didn’t ask for this,” she said, pushing out a breath. He fought the urge to roll his eyes.

“Neither did you,” he spat. “None of us did.”

…that wasn’t necessarily true, either. Both of them had asked for their Miraculous gems back when Master Fu had given them an out. But none of their ‘temporary’ superheroes had asked for the mantle (…well, except maybe Chloé, and Alya had been chosen but would go to her grave claiming she’d wanted it).

(…those words left a bitter taste in his mouth, all things considered.)

“Adrien, I mean it,” she said firmly. He wondered at how she could sound so certain while sounding so hollow. There was a dissonance in her tone, a paradox. Perhaps that was what Ladybug was becoming. What Hawkmoth had made her. “I am going to kill Gabriel Agreste, and I swear to every kwami in that Miracle Box if you try to stop me…”

He saw the silver bangle hanging against her wrist, glinting cold in the autumn light. He had thought it would be safely back in the Miracle Box by this point.

“I will go back as many times as it takes until he’s dead,” she said, sensing his gaze on the Miraculous. “…and if you try and stop me, I’ll kill you, too.”

He remembered a time when Marinette could barely speak to him. She had eventually told him those were the days when she was _crazy-stupid in love with him_, but of course she hadn’t told him that until after she had moved on and his father had arranged the marriage to Kagami.

…that was bound to fall apart any day now, too. He wondered if Mme. Tsurugi would enforce the contract if Gabriel Agreste was dead. If the model son would be of an value to the Tsurugi name once the father’s sins had been outed.

“I won’t stop you,” he said. He spun his ring around his finger. Felt Plagg huddle deeper in his shirt. “Actually, I was thinking of skipping town. Let’s face it: you don’t really need me for that showdown. I’ll only slow you down.”

“I’ll always need you, Adrien,” she said, but there was no warmth in her voice. No caring. Just the hard acknowledgment that he was the other half of her Miraculous, her partner, and maybe in another life…

God, he couldn’t believe he was thinking that _here_. Now. What kind of sick, twisted bastard was he?

“That’s not true, m’Lady, and you do yourself a disservice thinking it,” he sighed. She stepped away from him and knelt on the grass. Her gaze was distant, even as it focused on…he couldn’t look at it. It wasn’t real if he didn’t look at it.

“I didn’t ask for this,” she said.

“I know you didn’t ask for this,” he said, parroting her earlier words.

“Gabriel has to pay,” she said. His heart broke all over again.

“He will,” he said. “I swear it, m’Lady. We’ll make him pay.”

“I want him back,” she whispered, her voice finally cracking. He raised his head, and he had been wrong. His heart hadn’t broken before. It broke then, as he saw the silent tears cutting down her cheeks. Saw the way her thumb brushed against the silver bangle. Saw the turquoise kwami curling around her neck, hidden by her scarf, and the red kwami wiping at the tears. Heard the shattered moan her words had become. “I want him back…”

He dropped to his knees beside her and gathered her into his arms as she collapsed in on herself, a keening wail tearing from her throat. He held her tight, his heart breaking for his Lady, as she cried atop Luka Couffaine’s grave.

If Adrien was honest, he wanted him back, too. If only to stop the mourning wails that were tearing through his heart.


	5. 05 Oct: "I might just kiss you."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka might just have to kiss Marinette. She wishes he would stop saying it and just do it already.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “I might just kiss you.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Fluff. First kisses. Delayed first kisses. Teasing about kisses. The return of Marinette Oh-No-He’s-Hot Dupain-Cheng. Early post today because I’m about to vanish into project-finishing hell.

“I might just kiss you.”

The first time Luka said it, he caught Marinette completely off guard. She jumped, the border she was piping on the cake barely squiggling, and he was impressed by her skill just enough to be distracted. A lazy smile curled his lips as he leaned on the counter across from her, watching her work. She was adorable. Icing was smeared on her cheeks, which had turned a lovely pink at his words, and icing sugar dusted the hair that was thrown up in a messy bun. She just looked so…kissable.

He hadn’t kissed her yet. They’d been dating for almost two months, and sure: there had been plenty of cheek kisses, and forehead kisses, and hand kisses, but…there hadn’t actually been any mouth kisses. Real kisses. Proper kisses. I’m-in-love-with-you-and-want-to-snog-you-senseless kisses. Dare he even think it…_makeout kisses._ He honestly didn’t know what he was waiting for anymore.

“O-oh?” she asked, glancing back at the cake. She had resumed her piping as if he hadn’t said anything.

“I just thought you should know,” he said. He reached out and wiped the icing from her cheek. She froze as he brought his finger to his mouth and licked the icing off. He watched her throat move as she gulped. “I might just have to kiss you.”

– V –

He didn’t, in the end. Her father had come into the back to check on the progress of the cake, and the moment passed. (He loved Tom, but he was pretty sure no one wanted him present for their first kiss – especially Tom.)

It was a few days later, when they were hanging out in her room, when the thought crossed his mind again.

(…that was a lie. The thought had been crossing his mind a lot lately – he was just waiting for the right moment. He’d kind of built it up in his head by this point, which was actually very detrimental to the fact that he just wanted to kiss her already.)

“I might just kiss you,” he said, looking at her from her chaise. He was lying on his back, his socked feet kicked up against her wall, as he picked at his guitar. His head hung upside-down as he watched her pin fabric to a dress form. She glanced up at him, taking another pin from the cushion strapped to her wrist. She blushed as she quickly looked back to the dress.

“You keep saying that,” she said, sounding a little huffy. He chuckled as he plucked out a few more notes.

“I keep thinking it,” he said. He put the guitar down and crossed the room, kneeling behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. “You’ve been extra kissable lately.”

“…that’s not a word,” she said as he pressed his lips to the back of her neck. She shivered at his touch. “Luka, _stop_. I’m working with _needles_.”

“Maybe I want you to poke yourself,” he teased lightly. “Then I’d have no choice but to kiss it better.”

“…you want me to stab myself with a needle just so you can kiss me,” she deadpanned, and he had to admit it sounded a little twisted when you put it like that. He chuckled and kissed her cheek. “Luka!”

“_Fine,_” he sighed dramatically. He went back to the chaise and sat on the floor, pulling his guitar back into his lap. “I still want to kiss you, though.”

She wanted him to too, if she was honest.

– V –

Their lives got a little crazy after that, between school, akuma attacks, some boat maintenance his ma roped him into, babysitting, and a big order her parents roped her into. Though they texted constantly, he didn’t actually see her until the next week. She came home from school with Juleka and Rose, but instead of greeting him like the long-lost girlfriend she was she only stuck her tongue out at him as Rose corralled them below deck to Juleka’s room. He returned his gaze to the bit of deck he was scrubbing and tried not to think of that pink tongue poking out at him.

“Your mom said you’ve been out here a while,” she said an hour or so later, appearing at his side with a glass of ice water. “You should hydrate. You look hot.”

He raised an eyebrow at her as he took the glass, hiding his smirk with a sip. He was hot, but he would swear she was flirting with him.

“Thanks,” he said, holding up the glass in cheers. “I am. You look hot, too.”

“…I didn’t…that’s not what I…” she spluttered, groaning as she buried her red face in her hands. “Lukaaaa…”

“I might just kiss you,” he chuckled, taking another drink of the water. “You’re too cute, Mari.”

She stuck her tongue out at him again, which…wasn’t fair.

“You should stop saying it and just do it,” she huffed. “Honestly, I’m almost insulted you haven’t kissed me ye-”

He snaked an arm around her waist and yanked her to him, shutting her up with a kiss she broke by giggling against his mouth.

“Took you long enough,” she chided as he pulled back.

“Let’s try that again,” he chuckled, quickly pecking her lips. “I think we can do better than that.”


	6. 06 Oct: "Yes, I'm aware.  Your point?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette shows up to Luka's gig drunk and with some surprising news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Yes, I’m aware. Your point?”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Juleka Couffaine  
Rating: M / PG-16 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: I mean I’m thinking early twenties at least. Rating for language, a few dick jokes, and Drunk Mari. I just had this idea of a drunk Mari telling an akuma off. It spiraled from there. (These were gonna be 15MFics, but this was the one that stretched my time limit to 20m because Drunk Mari had Comments.)

_Get out here._

Luka glanced down at the text lighting up his phone screen. His eyebrows soared, the eyeliner poised just below his left eye where he had been finishing up his stage makeup.

_NOW_

The second text from his sister had him sighing. He quickly finished filling in his eye, dropped the pencil into the custom makeup bag Marinette had made him back in lycée (a good luck charm/congratulatory gift for landing his first solo gig), and headed out of the employee bathroom. It only took him a moment after walking into the main room of the crowded pub to see why Juleka had been so upset.

“He can kiss my ass!” he heard echoing above the din of the pub, the familiar female voice more than slightly inebriated. He followed the shouting to the bar, where Tim – the barkeep – was watching Marinette with amused eyes. Relief flooded Juleka’s expression when she saw him approach.

“Finally,” she grumbled. She laid her hands on Marinette’s shoulders to steady her. “Honey, you’re _drunk_. Like completely shit-faced.”

“Yes, I’m aware,” Marinette said glibly. She shot Juleka a withering look. “Your point?”

“I really think you should drink some water –” Juleka tried again, but Marinette was having none of it.

“I don’t _want_ water!” she groused. She pointed at Tim. “Tam! One more!”

Luka narrowed his eyes at Tim in a warning glare as he chuckled and tapped another shot in front of his diminutive friend. Tim only caught the look after Marinette had already downed the drink.

“Hey, Mari,” Luka said, coming up behind her. He laid a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. “Everything all right? I didn’t think I’d be seeing you tonight.”

It was Adrien’s birthday, after all, and even though Marinette rarely missed one of his gigs he had known she’d probably miss the one scheduled on her boyfriend’s birthday.

“Luka!” she cried, her entire demeanor flipping a one-eighty as she spun tipsily on the barstool to face him. She pulled him into a hug that was entirely too tight and not tight enough, her overheated face pressing against his neck. “Oh my God you smell amazing.”

“Uh…thanks?” he hazarded, awkwardly patting her back. Give him thirty minutes, he couldn’t help but think – then he’d just smell like sweat and smoke and…his eyes widened as he saw a black and purple butterfly flapping its way over to them, and he jumped when Marinette jerked away from him and pointed angrily at the akuma.

“Back the _fuck_ off, Hawky!” she snapped. “Not tonight! Not to-fucking-night!”

The butterfly froze. Luka was pretty sure the amused horror on Juleka’s face mirrored his own. The akuma wavered uncertainly before flapping away, and Marinette humphed in satisfaction.

“Thought so,” she muttered darkly. She raised her voice to call after it: “And tell your goddamn son he can suck my –!”

“Whoa!” Luka interrupted, grabbing her shoulders to steady her before she toppled off the barstool. What the ever-loving hell?! “Marinette, what the fuck is going on?”

She giggled as she looked back at him. She had told him once she loved when he swore – he so rarely did. Part of his _Zen_ attitude, she’d claimed. A lazy smile curled her lips as she leaned against him, her fingers dancing along his chest.

“Never mind,” she hummed. “I think I’d rather suck your –”

“Marinette!” he and Juleka both shouted, and she paused at their volume. Her cloudy eyes focused on him, actually _saw_ him – probably saw the concern shining bright in his eyes even in the dingy pub, and her entire demeanor crumbled. Her gusto drained from her and she slumped against his chest, a shaky breath escaping her.

“I dumped Adrien,” she said. Luka looked over her head to stare at Juleka. She looked as gobsmacked as he felt. “He called me _Ladybug_ right as he was about to…so I left him there and _bugged out_.”

“I’m so sorry,” he said, his arms coming up to wrap around her. And he was. Even if he was still madly in love with her, that didn’t mean he hadn’t been completely supportive of his friends’ relationship. He wanted her happy, and he had thought Adrien made her happy.

“It’s been coming for years, Luka,” she sighed, suddenly sounding entirely too sober for the number of shots still lined up on the bar. (They had discovered years ago that she was a total lightweight – he was amazed she was still conscious.) “He’s always loved Ladybug more than he’s loved Marinette, and Marinette’s always loved Luka more than she’s loved Adrien. It was coming. He didn’t, though.”

If he hadn’t been smacked over the head by her words, he might have heard the wicked little snicker that escaped her at her own joke. He felt a tap on his shoulder, and he numbly registered Dingo behind him, nodding towards the stage. He looked at Juleka, but her face was impassive.

What the _fuck_ was he supposed to do with that, then?

“Let’s get her into the green room,” Juleka said. “I can’t lift her on my own. She can sleep it off there, and we’ll deal after the set.”

“Mate,” Dingo said, and he waved him off.

“I’ll be right there. Stall for a few minutes,” he huffed. Marinette was snoring against his chest. He sighed and scooped her up, dropping a kiss against her forehead before he could think better of it. He sent a final glare to Tim. “Next time, cut her the hell off.”

Tim just grinned as they walked off, waving like he had no intention of actually listening to them.

The pub didn’t actually have a _green room_ – it was really just the manager’s office, where the older woman was kind enough to let them store their gear between sets and use the employee restroom to change. (Which was worlds better than the grimy public restrooms abused by the drunken pub crowd.) But it was painted a dull kelly green that leant to the nickname, and the manager thought it was too amusing to correct the giggers. Once he had Marinette settled against the couch and had explained to Jazz what was going on, he quickly made his way to the stage where Dingo, Juleka, and the rest of the band were waiting for him.

It was the first time he couldn’t wait for their set to be over before it had even begun. He was going to beat the ever-living shit out of Adrien when he saw him again.


	7. 07 Oct: "No, and that's final."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette sobers up a little. The conversation is started, but not necessarily finished. (Cont. of 10/6.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “No, and that’s final.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng (Breakup)  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: Continuing from Oct 6/yesterday’s. Drunk Mari is like my sister-in-law, apparently: I love her to death but she just won’t shut the hell up. (More dick jokes, because I think they’re funny and want to make Luka pass out from blood loss.)

Marinette’s phone had been blowing up for half the night. And while Luka knew he shouldn’t look at it, he also knew it could have been important: her parents looking for her, Alya concerned that she hadn’t come home, or – what it had turned out to be every single goddamned time – Adrien. It was just after three when Luka had grabbed his own phone and sent the calmest text he could to the model.

_she’s fine. she’s sleeping it off. let her be._

By that point, most of his annoyance had faded. He was at the least willing to wait until he got the full story from a sober Marinette before he hunted Adrien down.

_You’re with her?!_ flashed across his screen a second later. He groaned and flopped his head back against the wall. He glanced down at Marinette, who was still snoring beside him. He had had every intention of taking the couch like a gentleman, but Juleka had said she’d had quite a few drinks before she called him out. He wanted to be close by in case she woke up puking and needed help. (It wouldn’t be the first hangover he’d nursed her through. It also wouldn’t be the first one that looked like it was Adrien’s fault.)

(…maybe she was right. Maybe this had been coming for years, and all of them were just too stupid to see it.)

_she came to my gig. got drunk. wasn’t sending her off alone._ He sent the text to Adrien and hesitated. _dunno what happened but let her sleep it off. she’s ok. i’ll keep her safe._

He turned his phone off before Adrien could text him again, though the floating bubbles let him know Adrien was furiously typing away. He turned Marinette’s phone off, too.

He didn’t know when he fell asleep, but when he woke up he was lying beside her and she was curled into his chest. He had thought she was still asleep at first, but then he heard the quiet whimpers as she burrowed closer to him.

“Turn the light off,” she moaned, and he chuckled lowly as he laid a hand on the back of her head and pulled her closer. His blinds were open, and the late morning sun was blaring into the room.

“Keep your eyes shut,” he whispered after she groaned he was laughing too loud. It only took him a moment to pull the blackout curtains he’d invested in years ago (they helped with unreliable sleep schedules that revolved around late-night gigs and daytime napping) and slip back into the bed beside her. She sighed as she cuddled against him again.

“Thank you,” she said.

“How are you feeling?” he asked. She scrunched up her face.

“Like shit,” she said. Her eyes widened, but she didn’t look panicked. Or horrified, or any number of negative emotions that would lead him to say she regretted what next came out of her mouth. Just…bemused. Surprised. “I finally dumped Adrien.”

“That’s what you said last night,” he hummed, trying to ignore the _finally_ part. That was when he saw the horror creeping into her eyes, and a part of him was sad to think the breakup wouldn’t stick. Of course she just had to go and surprise the hell out of him with her next statement.

“After I offered you a blowjob,” she squeaked, glancing up at him. His face felt like it was on fire, but as hers was, too, he supposed that was all right.

“U-um, yeah,” he coughed, choking a little. “You did.”

“Oh my God,” she whined, “I actually said I wanted to suck your –”

“I was there!” he squawked, cutting her off again before she could finish the sentence. He had a feeling if he actually heard her say it – if he physically heard her refer to his dick in any way, shape, or form – he was going to spontaneously combust. She moaned again and pressed her face closer to his chest. He took a shaky breath and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. “You…you were drunk, Mari. You didn’t know what you were saying.”

“But I did, though – that’s the problem,” she moaned. “I totally wanted to suck –”

“Oh my God, Marinette, stop saying it!” he whined, hiding his face against her shoulder. He was going to pass out if his blood didn’t just stay put and stop fighting between his face and his…she was snorting, a hysterical giggle coming from his chest.

“But it feels like you want me to, too,” she said, shimmying just enough to let him know she felt where half of his blood was rushing. He groaned again before pressing his face harder against her shoulder. He was going to die. He was absolutely going to die.

“Stop, Mari,” he whined. “If you have any kindness left in you, you’ll stop.”

She was quiet for a long moment. He almost dared to hope he was safe.

“…so…you wouldn’t want me to, then?” she asked quietly. She sounded uncertain – almost afraid. Somehow that was worlds worse, the idea that she thought he would so quickly reject her. “You…you wouldn’t want me?”

“Marinette, you’re dating Adrien,” he said thickly. Because, in the end, it really didn’t matter what he’d want, and it wasn’t fair that she asked him something like that. It wasn’t fair that she showed up to his gig, drunk, offering blowjobs. It wasn’t fair that he was left to take care of her after she passed out, and it wasn’t fair that he woke up with her in his arms. None of this was fair, but he was an idiot that couldn’t just walk away. Not when it was her.

“I dumped him,” she huffed.

“You were upset, and you immediately got drunk,” he sighed. “He was texting you half the night, worried out of his mind. I don’t think it’s actually over.”

“Maybe not for him, but I mean it,” she sighed. She leaned away from him just enough that her head could fall on his pillow. She took a deep breath, a slow smile curling her lips. Her eyes were still closed, scrunched a little against the dim light, but there was something peaceful about her expression. Something reassuring – something freeing. “We’re over, Luka. I dumped his ass.”

“He still thinks you’re –” he said, and she surprised the hell out of him again by leaning up and pressing her lips firmly against his own. When she pulled back, she had opened her eyes just enough to glare at him.

“I dumped his ass. We’re not together. We haven’t been for a long time. _No,_” she sighed, closing her eyes again when he opened his mouth to protest. She pressed her fingers over his lips. _He’s always loved Ladybug more than he’s loved Marinette_, she had said the night before. Right before she’d told him she’d always loved _him_ more than Adrien. He still wasn’t sure what the hell he was supposed to do with that. “And that’s final. I _dumped his ass_, Luka.”

“Marinette, I know you say that now, but once you talk to him…” he sighed, but she kissed him again. It lasted a little longer, and maybe he didn’t immediately pull away like he knew he should have. He maybe even chased after her to make it last a little longer when she did.

“I wanted to spend _his_ birthday with _you_,” she said. “What kind of girlfriend does that? It…ugh, Luka, please. My head hurts too much to talk about this right now. Can you just trust that I know what I’m doing, it’s over with him, and hold me? I’ll stop kissing you and everything. Just let me sleep this off. Preferably in your arms.”

He knew what he should say. Exactly what she had said about her relationship with Adrien not moments before: _No, and that’s final_. But he was apparently a glutton for punishment, and he was in love with her, and – as Juleka loved to point out – he was really, _really_ stupid.

“Ok, Mari,” he sighed, pulling her back towards him. He pressed his lips to her temple, and she sighed as she burrowed closer to him. “But you really need to talk to him later. And then…then we need to talk.”

They _really_ needed to talk…


	8. 08 Oct: "Can you stay?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette finally wakes up and talks to Adrien. Luka needs her to stop kissing him. (Cont. of 10/6 and 10/7.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Can you stay?”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng (Breakup)  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: 6-8 are a series now, apparently. Language. Jealous Adrien. Not as many dick jokes (Drunk Mari just wants to get laid, apparently). So my best friend is a Horny Drunk, my sister-in-law is a Dumbass Drunk, and I’m a Fight Me/Dumbass Drunk (I’m the one who shouts “FIGHT ME!” then swings so wide she knocks herself out). I feel like I’m HCing Mari as a Horny/Fight Me Drunk.

Luka waited until Marinette had drifted off before moving. Actually, he waited a little bit longer than was probably necessary – just to be sure she was actually sleeping and wouldn’t leap up in a mad dash to the bathroom, of course – before he slowly untangled himself from her arms, rolled over on the bed, and glared at their phones on the nightstand. The second he turned that phone on, he knew it was all going to be real.

…he wasn’t sure if he wanted it to be real. Not yet. Not like this.

So it was almost noon before he finally shoved himself out of the bed, yanked on the jeans he’d been wearing the previous night, stashed his phone in the back pocket, and went out to the kitchen. He wasn’t sure how much later Marinette was going to sleep, but he was hungry.

It was maybe two hours later when he heard signs of life from the bedroom. He glanced up from the sofa, where he was munching through his third bowl of Lucky Charms that afternoon (…they had been spread out, as once he had actually tried eating he realized he wasn’t really that hungry after all, until he was halfway through the first bowl and realized he was really hungry, and by the third bowl he was just nervously picking – Marinette called it _stress snacking_ and did it in abundance during deadlines), when he heard the door start to open. It had barely opened a crack before he heard Marinette’s ringtone and it slammed shut again.

What followed was half an hour of angry conversation he was both glad to hear and wanted no part of at all (even if he was, admittedly, a big part of it). It had started in hushed tones, but as the conversation drew out Marinette got louder until she was screaming, and it was hard to ignore what was being said when it was being shouted so close. And…well, Marinette was right: they were over, they had been for a while, and it had been coming for years. She even went as far as saying they never should have dated in the first place, but _teenagers do stupid shit, Adrien._ He wasn’t sure if he was surprised or just guilty when he heard her shout, “Don’t blame Luka – this is _not_ Luka’s fault, Adrien! It’s yours! Ours! Yes, I was with him last night, but that wasn’t on him! No, I – Adrien, don’t you dare!”

His phone started blowing up then. He only looked at the first few texts before he chucked it across the room.

_Did you sleep with her?!_

_Luka what the hell?!_

_How could you do this me?! To us?!_

_You knew I was going to propose!!! You helped me pick out the ring!!!_

Make him feel like more of an ass, Agreste.

There was maybe another five minutes of shouting before Marinette finally just told him to go to hell. When the door opened this time, Marinette stormed out into the living room, straddled his lap, and yanked his mouth to hers in a fierce kiss. What was left of his Lucky Charms – a dry bowl, thank God – spilled over the sofa.

“You actually helped him pick out a ring and didn’t tell me?” she asked when she pulled away.

“You need to stop kissing me,” he sighed, but he hadn’t removed his hand from her hip, and his thumb was still rubbing against her skin where it had slipped under her shirt. “Are you feeling better?”

“Physically? Worlds,” she said. “Emotionally? I’m pissed as hell and looking to take advantage of you in pure, vengeful, hate-fueled rebound sex.”

He choked.

“Marinette, you can’t just _say_ things like that!” he groaned. Didn’t she have any idea what saying shit like that did to him? Didn’t she care?

“But I’m fully aware that it would be cruel to both of us, and I don’t want to sleep with you until we’re both ready for it and Adrien isn’t even a factor in the why,” she sighed. She kissed him again, gently this time, and he moaned as she dipped her tongue into his mouth. She needed to stop kissing him – he needed to stop letting her – but damn it all if he was beyond caring at this point. “But for the record, just so we’re perfectly clear, when all this has settled I really do want to sleep with you. And that has nothing to do with Adrien and everything to do with the fact that I’ve been in love with you since college. I’m sorry about all this.”

“I just wish you had told me you guys were having so many problems,” he said. He was choosing to ignore the other part, for now. He couldn’t think about that now, not when she was so close and so willing and…ugh, she was making it so hard to be noble. And _she_ was the one saying she wanted to take advantage of _him…_ “I wouldn’t have gone ring shopping with him if I had known.”

“Ugh. Tell me it was ostentatious and I was totally gonna hate it,” she groaned, pressing her forehead against his shoulder. He chuckled, dropping a kiss against her neck. He needed to stop doing that, too, but they had always been subtly physical with the other. (Hindsight, it was no surprise Adrien was blaming him…)

“Actually, you probably were,” he laughed. “Adrien didn’t listen to any of my advice. The ring’s hideous.”

“Well, now he can take it back and tell the jeweler, ‘Yeah? The guy that helped me pick it out? She’s boning him now.’ It would serve him right,” she sniffed, and he groaned as he squeezed her hips.

“Marinette…” he sighed, and she giggled as she kissed his cheek.

“I meant it, Luka. Mean it. I love you, not him. I’m sorry it took me so long to get my head out of my ass and admit it,” she said. He sighed and tipped his head back against the couch.

“This is a conversation for after we’ve gotten you fed,” he said. He lifted an eyebrow at her. “Can you eat? No nausea?”

“I’m actually starving,” she said. She glanced at her phone, and he saw the string of notifications lighting up the screen.

“Can you stay?” he asked. He chuckled when she chucked her phone in the same direction he had sent his earlier.

“For you? Always,” she said, cuddling into him again. He could get used to this if he wasn’t careful. He might already be. “Toast? Eggs?”

“…I always have eggs,” he mumbled darkly, rolling his eyes, and she pressed her face against his neck as she giggled.

“Scrambled, not boiled,” she snickered. He stood in a fluid motion, and she squealed as she locked her arms and legs around him. He grinned as he held her close, snatching the upended cereal bowl with his free hand before carrying her to the kitchen.

“As you wish.”


	9. 09 Oct: "There is a certain taste to it."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka didn't know - or would have believed, if he had known - Lila had a nut allergy when he shoved the macaron in her mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “There is a certain taste to it.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Lila Rossi  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: Double post today because I got home yesterday at three, ended up taking my mum to the ER, and didn’t get home until almost two AM. Sooo no post yesterday – sorry, y’all. (She’s fine, or she will be.) Anyway, I saw something somewhere about Lila lying about having a nut allergy while eating a macaron, and I was Severely Disappointed that no one called her on it. Traditional macarons are made with almond flour – something Mari would know, given her parents (and the Adrien Macaron). My project for the unit course is also on food allergens, so I’m a liiiittle biased.

Luka Couffaine had _no fucking clue_ what was happening.

One minute, that Lila girl was crowding into his personal space and trying to flirt with him, and then she was _leaning in to try and kiss him_, so he had shoved a macaron in her mouth to stop her. He had thought it was harmless enough – it was just a macaron, after all, and she had been holding one of the packages Marinette had stayed up most of the night before wrapping like she had every intention of buying one, so he had thought it was fine. Innocent enough.

But then she had started _choking_, and Alya and Rose had started _screaming_, and suddenly _he_ was the bad guy because he had apparently tried to kill the class sweetheart?

The hell?

“She has a nut allergy, dumbass!” Alya shrieked at him as Rose stabbed an EpiPen in Lila’s thigh. Her face was beet red and quickly turning the size of a blimp. He was sorely tempted to snap a picture, but he knew that would just get Alya shouting more.

“How was I supposed to know that?” he asked her hotly, folding his arms over his chest. Because prior to this incident, Luka hadn’t actually met Lila. Oh, sure, he knew of her – but they hadn’t actually met. And what he knew above everything else?

The girl was a dirty, rotten _liar_.

(She had also threatened Marinette on multiple occasions, had almost had her expelled, and left Marinette feeling awful in general – so he knew _two _things about Lila: one, she was a liar, and two, he _really_ didn’t like her.)

(…that didn’t mean he’d actively try to kill her, though!)

“_Everyone_ knows she has an allergy!” Alya snapped, and he rolled his eyes.

“I don’t go to your school, Césaire,” he huffed. “I’ve never met her before today, so I ask again: _how was I supposed to know that?”_

“She _was_ touching the macarons,” Juleka mumbled from his side. He threw an arm in her direction.

“Thank you!” he cried. “See? She wasn’t acting like she was allergic!”

“Wh-what’s in them?” Lila rasped, her voice grating like sandpaper.

“Almond flour,” Alya said. Lila’s eyes widened, and Alya sighed. “C’mon, girl – that medicine’s going to help, but you know we gotta get you to the hospital. Couffaine, we’re talking about this later!”

“I didn’t do it on purpose, Césaire!” he called after them, but Alya just waved him off. He slumped back in his seat and groaned, rubbing his hands on his face.

The day had been going _so well_, too.

The band was selling macarons at the school to help raise funds for a music festival they’d be playing over the summer. It was three hours out of town, and Marinette had had the brilliant idea of running a bake sale. The band had helped her make the macarons, and they’d all been up late the night before wrapping the cookies in packets of two. The whole week had been great, honestly. He’d loved spending extra time with Marinette and learning about the bakery from her parents. And he’d enjoyed the afternoon by the school, hanging out with her as they sold the treats (even if Juleka kept shooting them Looks and texting him to _stop being gross_).

But then she had left to get them drinks, and while she was gone Alya had walked up with the unfamiliar girl, and everything had spiraled from there.

“I should go with them,” Rose fretted, looking after them. “Make sure she’s all right.”

“She’ll be _fine_,” Luka scoffed. “I’m sure she was faking.”

Juleka gawked at him. Neither noticed Rose scurrying after Alya and Lila, eager to get away from the pending Couffaine Explosion.

“Bro,” she said. “Her face was the size of a _watermelon_. You can’t fake that.”

“Oh, I’m sure she has a way,” he muttered darkly. Juleka actually glared at him.

“Look, just because your girlfriend’s told you she’s a horrible person doesn’t mean it’s true,” she said. “Like…Marinette’s great, but she’s not exactly unbiased when it comes to Lila. You can’t believe everything Marinette says about her.”

“Are you serious right now?” he asked, sitting up straighter. He let the _girlfriend_ comment slide – for now. “Jules, are you actually serious?”

“Lila’s got a lot of issues, Luka,” she said, and he scoffed. That was one way to put it… “A nut allergy isn’t unlikely.”

“She’s also a liar, so it’s also possible that she was just lying about a nut allergy! How was I supposed to know?” he asked. “Maybe if you all were better friends to Marinette instead of automatically siding with this outsider –”

“Says the one who doesn’t even go to this school,” Juleka cut in, and he let out a frustrated groan.

“You’re not the one who has to pick up the pieces every time Lila hurts her!” he snapped. “So forgive me for not thinking Lila’s the perfect little saint you all seem to believe!”

“She’s –!” Juleka started, but another voice spoke over her.

“Guys?” Marinette asked as she walked up with a carryout try full of iced coffees. “Is everything okay? Did something happen while I was gone?”

“Nothing,” Luka sighed, taking the coffee she handed him.

“Luka just tried to murder Lila,” Juleka said as she took her own coffee. Marinette’s eyes bugged out, her eyebrows disappearing beneath her bangs. “He’s going to try his hand as a serial killer.”

“There is a certain taste to it…” he muttered derisively. As she continued to stare at him, he put the coffee on the table and pulled her into his lap. “It’s nothing. It was an accident. She’ll be fine. Just…damn. I _really_ don’t like her.”

“So you tried to kill her?” Marinette asked, bemused.

“She tried to kill herself!” he cried. “Everyone knows there’s almonds in macarons – she shouldn’t have touched it if she knew she was allergic!”

“You shoved it in her mouth!” Juleka shouted.

“She was trying to kiss me!” he cried back. Marinette choked on her drink, her head whipping between them.

“She _what?!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aF4ai20CFRo - Also this is NOT how you use an EpiPen, but every time I see mine in my purse this is all I can think of.


	10. 10 Oct: "Listen, I can't explain it, you'll have to trust me."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette keeps dating losers. Luka's always ready with a midnight hug when the dates fall through.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Listen, I can’t explain it, you’ll have to trust me.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Marinette Dupain-Cheng/Unnamed Losers, Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: GUESS WHO KNOCKED THAT PRESENTATION OUT OF THE PARK EVEN WITH HER VOICE CRACKING WORSE THAN LUKA’S DURING PUBERTY AND NOW GETS HER LIFE BACK! And then I got home from Last Class to a power outage – so the update almost got missed again. xD Anyway, kinda angsty, a little along the hurt/comfort veins. I love these idiots, but there are two scenarios: they get together in lycée/college and are Those Dorks that were together since high school, or they’re the couple that just never Owns Their Shit and has years of missed chances, never speaking up, and Baggage (but still eventually end together and perfect). (10 Years, Oscar Isaac/Alan Doyle’s “Best I Never Had”. I will fight y’all on this.)
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNJFfu365wk – No seriously tell me that’s not a Lukanette song for Scenario B. (Also there’s a better quality audio of this song, but this vid has Alan and the story of the songwriting, which I adore. Because if you need a good song written in like two minutes, just text Alan and two minutes later SKADOOSH – great song. According to Scott Grimes, at least. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhURYFJc5XM )

Luka had been asleep for maybe an hour when he heard the knocking on his door. It hadn’t actually been loud enough to wake him, but the insistent buzzing by his head had. He stared blearily at his phone, but one quick glance at the messages and he was wide awake. By the time he crossed the one-bedroom apartment and had yanked open the door, Marinette was already turning to go.

She was beautiful. She was always beautiful, but tonight she was dressy. Date clothes. It made him feel highly underdressed – he was just in a pair of old, plaid sleep pants – and didn’t match the miserable look on her face.

“O-oh,” she stammered, twisting her hands nervously. “Y-you’re awake?”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. He pulled her into his arms before she could say anything else, and he sighed when she collapsed against him. He felt her tears on his chest before he heard the quiet sniffles. “Well. I am now, I guess.”

“S-sorry,” she mumbled, and he shook his head as he leaned back against the wall, tugging her into his apartment. He kicked the door shut and held her closer as her sobs grew worse.

“Don’t ever be,” he murmured, kissing the crown of her head. “What happened?”

“I hate dating,” she moaned. He hid his wince with a chuckle.

“That again?” he asked, and she groaned as she lightly punched his arm. “What happened this time?”

She was quiet for a long moment. He could only guess: most of her dates – usually blind ones set up by Alya because Marinette never took the time to meet anyone herself – ended badly when an akuma attacked and she had to ditch said date to save the day. Not that he actually knew that, of course.

“Listen,” she finally sighed, resting her damp cheek against his bare chest. “I can’t explain it. You’ll have to trust me. It just…didn’t end well.”

“It’s his loss,” he said, rubbing a hand along her back. She was getting lazier with her excuses, the older they got. _We got separated in the crowd_, _I ditched him for a bathroom when the screams started_, and _I forgot I left the stove on_ had all turned into _just trust me_ and _I can’t explain_.

“Just once it’d be nice if a guy stuck around after an akuma ruins the date,” she moaned. The more exhausted part of his mind – the more coherent part, at the late hour – couldn’t help but think it was the closest she’d ever come to confessing her secret identity. “It’s not like I plan it! He has to hide, I have to hide –”

“The crowd separates you so you can’t hide together,” he said glibly, rolling his eyes, and she shot him a suspicious look. “I’ve been in akuma attacks with you before, Mari. I know your lines.”

“Am I that awful that no one ever wants to wait until after the akuma’s gone? Am I not worth waiting for?” she mumbled, turning back to his chest. He held her closer, hating how vulnerable she sounded and hating himself for trying to make light of the situation.

“I’d wait for you,” he said softly. It wasn’t a lie: he’d been waiting for her since he was seventeen. Not that she knew that, either. She laughed and rubbed at her eyes.

“Stop,” she said. “You don’t have to be nice to me just because we’re friends.”

He thought that’s what being a friend was sometimes.

“I would,” he said, firmer this time. “I meant it, Mari: it’s their loss. If they can’t see how special you are then they don’t deserve you.”

“I actually liked this one,” she sighed. “We’ve been trying to set this date up for weeks, and it’s the third time I’ve had to bail on him because…”

She didn’t have to say it. It was hard having a social life – a dating life – as a superhero. Especially when no one was allowed to know you were a superhero.

“…never mind,” she mumbled.

“You can’t explain it,” he said, running his fingers through her hair. He liked the pixie cut she had adopted the previous spring. “You shouldn’t have to.”

“You’re too sweet,” she said. He chuckled, squeezing her briefly.

“Nah,” he said around a yawn. “I’m an idiot. Ask Juleka.”

“She’s your sister,” she laughed. “She has to say that.”

“Doesn’t make it any less true,” he hummed. He glanced into the apartment, eyeing his couch appreciatively. “Wanna watch something? I’m probably gonna fall asleep on it, but you’re welcome to stay. I’m told I make an excellent pillow.”

“You’re my favorite pillow,” she sighed. He pretended her words didn’t make his heart skip a beat. “You don’t mind?”

“I never mind for you,” he said. She sighed, her eyes drooping as she snuggled against him.

“Alya’s right,” she mumbled. “I should just stop dating losers and date you. Why haven’t we ever dated, Luka?”

_Because you were in love with Adrien, and I left town like a coward, and then you went to New York, and now that we’re both here you’re too busy for any kind of relationship, and then Hawk Moth came back, and you don’t see me like that, and you keep going on these dates with _losers_, and if you ever gave me a chance we’d be amazing, and you don’t realize I’ve been in love with you since –_

“Luka?” she asked, interrupting his mental list. He took a deep, steadying breath and ran his fingers through her hair again.

“It was just never our time,” he said. She hummed as he scooped her up and carried her over to the couch, and she snuggled into him as he sat down and reached for the remote. He put on some old sitcom and let it play in the background.

“We should fix that,” she said, twisting so her head was in his lap and she could watch the show. He hummed as he continued brushing his fingers through her hair. They couldn’t, he knew. Not until her life settled down a little. Not until she was willing to let him help her through the chaos, wait for her like the _losers_ didn’t.

“Yeah,” he sighed. “Maybe we should.”


	11. 11 Oct: "It's not always like this."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three times life got hard, but they took comfort in the fact that it wouldn't always be that way. The hard times make the rest sweeter, anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “It’s not always like this.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K / G / All Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Have y’all seen mc-lukanette’s Lukanette HCs? The “darning” nickname is theirs, and I’m determined to have it catch on because it’s so damn cute. (I feel like I’ve been rough on these guys this week. I owe them some silly fluff. Hopefully the prompts cooperate.)

Dating Marinette wasn’t supposed to be hard, and it wasn’t – not really. It was easy, like breathing, or like picking out the tune the gentle pitter-pat of her heart skipped any time he kissed her. Dating Marinette was perfect.

Dating Ladybug, on the other hand, was hell.

Interrupted or flat-out cancelled dates, the constant worry every time he saw the news footage (or, worse, watched it live as Viperion), the guilt in her eyes every time she pulled away and told him to get somewhere safe. The guilt in his own when he wanted to take her with him – get her somewhere safe, too – and knew he couldn’t because he was worried about her and she was worried about Paris.

“It’s not always like this,” she sighed, leaning up to press a kiss against his lips. He held her to him maybe longer than he should have. “It won’t always be like this.”

“Stay safe,” he whispered against her lips, and then she was running off as the screams started up again.

It wasn’t always like that, true. It wouldn’t always be like that.

He just prayed he had the patience to wait out the hard days. He thought he could, for her.

– V –

But, of course, life doesn’t stop just because you fall in love. As soon as they found their groove as superheroes, other distractions reared their ugly heads.

He got the opportunity of a lifetime when Jagged Stone asked him to go on tour with him. Of course she didn’t let him say no.

She finished lycée and got an internship with Audrey Bourgeois, which found her travelling between Paris and New York every other week.

He missed hearing her heartbeat, feeling it flutter beneath his fingers. She missed his hugs, the calming presence he brought to her life. They missed each other, and phone calls and text messages just weren’t the same as actually being there.

“It’s not always like this,” he sighed, rolling over in his bunk on the tour bus. She stared at him blearily from the phone, over a thousand miles away and half-asleep amidst the swathes of fabric.

“Ladybug could defeat Hawkmoth,” she says around a yawn. “Marinette can defeat long-distance.”

His lips quirked in a smile, and she grinned back at him.

“I’ll see you next week,” he said, and she hummed.

“Good,” she said. “Then I can kiss that stupid smile off your face.”

The drummer griped at him to shut the hell up as he tried to muffle his laughter with his pillow.

– V –

They were both used to late nights and minimal sleep, but this was a new kind of hell entirely.

He looked up from the rocker as she came into the room, her short hair sticking up at odd angles and her robe falling off her shoulder. The baby was still fussing in his arms, and she sighed as she held out her hands.

“Give her here,” she sighed. He shook his head.

“I was trying to let you sleep,” he said. He was pretty sure she hadn’t had a full night’s sleep since the baby had arrived a month and a half ago. She kicked at his leg half-heartedly, and he grinned up at her. “Mari, darning, go back to bed. I’ve got her.”

“I’m already up,” she whined. She bent to take the baby, but he took her chin and pulled her into a kiss instead. She mumbled her protests against his mouth, but after a moment of persistence she kissed him back. “You play dirty.”

“I want you to rest,” he said. “I’ve got her. You haven’t been sleeping, Mari.”

“It’s not always like this,” she sighed, and he kissed her again.

“It’s not,” he agreed, “but she’s a colicky baby, and right now it is. I’ve got her. I’m still mostly awake from the show, anyway. You go back to bed. I’ll get her down.”

She tried to roll her eyes, but they stopped about half-way as another yawn escaped her. He swatted her butt as she turned, and she groaned as she made her way back their room.

“That’s your maman,” he whispered to their little girl, chuckling as he heard their door slam. “She loves you very much, and she’s as stubborn as they come.”

Beautiful blue eyes blinked back at him, and he bent to kiss her soft forehead.

It wasn’t always like this, and he knew it wouldn’t be like this forever, but in that moment he was content to hold their little girl and enjoy the moment it was.


	12. 12 Oct: "What if I don't see it?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka steps up as Ladybug while Marinette is out of commission.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “What if I don’t see it?  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K / G / All Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Kwami swap. I don’t know exactly what happened, but I imagine Marinette tripped on something (I dunno maybe there was a tickle fight involved and she tripped trying to get away from him). Insert scenario here – time limit didn’t allow for those details. xD

They all knew Marinette’s clumsiness would catch up to her one day. It was only a matter of time, after all, even with the goddess of good luck in her pocket (er, purse). It was just bad timing that it happened on the Liberty. Specifically that it happened on Luka’s watch and was, technically, kind of, sort of, _maybe_ his fault.

(They both decided to blame Anarka, in the end, and if the deck was a little (a lot) cleaner by the time he got back from taking her to the hospital no one chose to comment.)

“I am so sorry,” he sighed as he walked beside her on the way back to the bakery. He eyed the boot they’d put her foot in, the crutches she was using to hobble her way home, and tried not to wince.

“For the last time, Luka, it’s not your fault I’m a walking disaster,” she sighed. She groaned as she stopped to lean against the wall of a store. They still had at least two blocks to go, and she was exhausted. “I’m honestly surprised something like this hasn’t happened before. At least it’s not fully broken.”

“You’ll still be out of commission for a few weeks,” he said. He knelt beside her and touched the boot, frowning. “Marinette…”

“Don’t,” she said, swatting at him with one of her crutches. He hopped up and smiled slightly, holding up his hands in defense. “I don’t blame you. It was an accident. I still haven’t fully adjusted to your mom’s chaos – we should just be glad this hasn’t happened sooner.”

“I still feel guilty,” he sighed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her into a side hug. “If you need anything, you call me, all right? I don’t care how late it is. I’m there. I’ll even crash on your couch and wait on you like some old-timey manservant.”

She snorted at that, rolling her eyes fondly as she laid her head on his shoulder. She glanced up at him and smirked, saying, “My parents might have something to say about that, but they might let you stay for tonight. They do seem to like you a lot.”

He grinned at that, but he said nothing. She bit her lip and glanced at her injured foot.

“Actually…” she said, hesitantly. “There might be _something_ you can do to help me…”

– V –

Twenty minutes later found them in an abandoned building a short ways from the bakery. Luka – decked out in red and black spots with Marinette’s Miraculous in his ears – stood in the center of a room on the second floor, his Lucky Charm in his hands and staring around the room in confusion. Marinette (decked out in turquoise scales, the Snake Miraculous on her wrist) sat on a wooden crate, watching him in amusement.

“…what if I don’t see it?” he finally asked, frowning as he looked around. She giggled, and he raised an eyebrow at her.

“Well, Beetlebug,” she tsked (she had flat-out refused to let him call himself _Beetlejuice_), “to be fair this is just a training exercise. In the heat of battle, it’ll come easier.”

“You sound so certain,” he sighed, fluffing the ladybug-spotted pillow as he walked over to her. He hopped onto the crate beside her and stared at the pillow in frustration. “This is a horrible idea. I know I said I’d do anything, but this is a _really_ bad idea.”

“No,” she said, kissing his cheek. “Leaving Paris unprotected while I’m out of commission is a really bad idea. Trusting you with my identity and Miraculous is the best idea I’ve had in a while.”

“Chat Noir would disagree,” he argued, and Marinette – no, _Vipernette_ (he had choked a little when she’d declared that name) – shook her head.

“Chat doesn’t even know who I am, Beetlebug,” she said. He raised an eyebrow at her, but he knew why she was sticking to their aliases. Just because they thought they were alone didn’t mean they really were. Someone could always stumble into the building as easily as they had. (…well. He’d carried her, technically, and swung in on the yoyo.) “And technically you figured it out ages ago. I’m just taking advantage of that fact to keep Paris safe.”

“Beetlebug is going to be a poor substitute for Ladybug,” he said. She laid her hand on his thigh and squeezed as she leaned up to kiss his cheek.

“Viperion is a great hero, and he’s going to be a great Ladybug until Vipernette can step back up,” she said. “I believe in you. Believe in yourself.”

He ducked down for a proper kiss, and she hummed as he pulled her closer.

“Thanks, darning,” he said. He glanced down at her leg and grinned when it lit up in red and black spots. He took the Lucky Charm and propped it under her leg, scooting her back so her foot could be elevated. “I think I might be starting to see it.”


	13. 13 Oct: "I never knew it could be (that) way."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka's learning a new instrument. Jagged and nicknames are discussed. Fluff is fluffed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So lottiejames on Tumblr has this post about Jonathan Young as a possible inspiration for Luka. And I’d never heard of the guy before, but after crawling through his YT page heck yeah I’m seeing it. And there’s this vid for “Kiss The Girl”, and there’s a keytar/dorky dancing, and I needed some fluff, guys. I needed it so bad. (There were like three different ideas all cramming to get in here what even. Also mc-lukanette again, because the “darning” name came up again. xD)
> 
> The post: https://verfound.tumblr.com/post/188275061367/so-about-luka-obviously-andrew-russell-lukas  
The song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZ6EQD8Pu8k

“Luka?”

“In here!” he called, and he grinned as Marinette stepped into his cabin. She paused just inside the door, blinking over the box she was carrying as she considered him. More specifically: the instrument in his arms.

“That’s…not your guitar,” she said by way of greeting. He grinned and danced his fingers along the keys, picking out a jaunty tune. She snorted and put the box by the wall before climbing onto the bed beside him. “What is that?”

“It’s called a keytar,” he said. At her look, he picked out a few more notes.

“A keytar,” she deadpanned, and he nodded.

“It’s a mini keyboard you wear like a guitar,” he said. “It’s awesome.”

“I never knew it could be that way. Like…a mini hybrid. And what sparked the sudden interest in the…keytar?” she asked, gesturing to the instrument. He hesitated, and at her look he shrugged.

“Adrien,” he said. Her eyebrows rose, and he shrugged again. “Look. He’s always welcome to jam with the band, but I think we all know he’s never going to have the time or permission to be a full-time member as long as his dad’s around. And some of the songs sounded really good with the keys, so I figured it was time one of us learned how to play the thing.”

“Makes sense,” she said, nodding. “But…keytar? You have the actual keyboard in the other room.”

He lifted it off his neck and sighed, leaning back against the wall. She scooted closer to him, and he smiled as he lifted an arm over her shoulders. She sighed happily as she relaxed against his side.

“It was Jagged’s idea,” he finally said, and she jumped back up, gawking at him. He immediately missed her warmth. He wiggled his fingers at her, inviting her back to his side, but she didn’t move.

“_Jagged_ Jagged?” she squawked. He chuckled.

“How many Jaggeds do we know?” he asked. She shrugged and finally settled back against him. “I mentioned an interest in learning the keys, and he’s been giving me lessons. I think it’s some misguided attempt at making up for missing seventeen years. I told him it wasn’t necessary, but…you know Jagged.”

“I didn’t realize you two had been speaking,” she said. His thumb rubbed against her shoulder, and he shrugged. “Are you ok?”

“I mean…I guess I have to give him props for trying? I just…I’m trying to be fair. It’s not his fault Ma kept us from him,” he said. “He’s trying in the only way he knows how, and it’s not his fault I just don’t see the need for a dad this late in the game. I never needed him before, so I don’t see why I need him now, y’know? But that’s my damage, not his. And if he’s willing to try, I am, too.”

“Luka…” she sighed, and he pressed a kiss against her temple.

“It’s fine, Mari,” he said. He looked back to the keytar and smiled. “Anyway. Jagged’s been impressed with how quickly I’ve picked up the keys, but he suggested the keytar for Kitty Section’s overall sound. He said it would make for more interesting shows, and because I’m already so comfortable with guitar it might be an easier fit. Gotta admit: I’ve been having fun with it.”

“I’m sure,” she snickered. “Just…it’s kinda sad. ‘Keys’ doesn’t sound as cool as ‘Strings’.”

He tilted his head, an amused look crossing his face.

“_Strings?_” he asked, and her cheeks turned a pretty pink.

“You should know by now Alya has codenames for everyone,” she huffed. He hadn’t, but it didn’t surprise him. “You were ‘Strings’. I guess I’d taken to calling you that in my head. I thought it was cute, because of your guitar, and how you play on my heartstrings, and because I play with string all the time, and…”

His laugh cut her off, and she snapped her mouth shut and stared at him in horror as she realized what she had actually said. He took her face in his hands and tipped her head down, pressing his lips firmly against her forehead. There had been a few overheard conversations between Alya and Juleka that made _so much sense_ now. He loved it.

“I’m not giving up the guitar, Mari,” he chuckled. He bent his head to her ear, his lips ghosting over it as he whispered, “You can still call me _Strings_ if you want.”

She shoved at him, snorting as she glared half-heartedly at Juleka’s empty side of the room.

“Nope. It’s dumb. Forget I said it,” she said, and he laughed as he pulled her back against his side.

“What does Alya call you, then?” he asked. She rolled her eyes.

“Depends on what harebrained scheme she’s cooked up this week, but she tends to use flowers,” she said. “I used to be _Lotus_, but she’s taken to calling me _Cherry Blossom_ the past few times.”

“Cherry Blossom, huh? Don’t know if I’m feeling that,” he said, though he could see why. It was the pattern Marinette tended to use most often in her personal designs. She gave him a look, and he grinned.

“You don’t have to _feel it_ – it’s her codename,” she said.

“But if you have a codename for me, I should have a codename for you, too,” he said. He tipped his head back and tapped his chin, thinking. “How about…I got it. Since I’m _Strings_, and you play with strings all the time –”

“Oh my God stop it,” she groaned, hiding her burning face in her hands.

“…and isn’t _darning_ when you mend something with strings? So why don’t I call you _Darning?_” he asked, ignoring her protests. She lifted her head and stared at him, blinking a few times as she thought it over. He winked at her. “Y’know. ‘Cause you’re my _darling_, just with _strings_.”

“That’s…I actually like that,” she said. Her cheeks were still slightly pink, and he grinned as he kissed her cheek again. She giggled and swatted him away. “You are such a dork. When did you get so clever?”

“I’ve always been clever, _Darning_,” he said, and she snorted as he tried to catch her mouth for a kiss this time. When she leaned back, he gave her a joking pout. “Mari. Can I kiss you?”

“No,” she giggled, squirming away from him. “You’re a dork, and I don’t kiss dorks.”

“But I’m _your_ dork, Darning,” he said, and she giggled again as she let him pull her back towards him. “Please? I’d really like to kiss you now.”

“Oh, _fine_,” she sighed dramatically. “I guess if I’m gonna get tangled up in _strings_ there are worse ones out there.”

His head fell against her shoulder, laughing as she threaded her fingers through his hair. He felt her smile as she kissed his forehead.

“Aren’t you supposed to be kissing me, Strings?” she asked. He chuckled and leaned up, pressing his lips to hers.

“As my Darning commands.”


	14. 14 Oct: "I can't come back."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (Cont. of Oct. 6-8.) Luka and Marinette talk. Adrien shows up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “I can’t come back.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng (Breakup)  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: Remember when Oct. 6-8 were all linked? Yeah, apparently I wasn’t as done with that as I thought. (Adrien shows up. Angsty. Countertop makeouts. “I smell the bacon” is my favorite part of this whole bit.) Also I am so sorry for any glaring typos/spelling/whatever. My left eye freaked out on me today, and thankfully all’s good (it’s just a minor bit of uveitis), but I’m SUPER dilated right now. Like 24-hr dilation drops that were only supposed to go in my left eye but I used to work at my eye doc’s so we started talking and he put the drops in both eyes. So. Guys I’m just hoping this posts ok right now ‘cause I can’t see for shit. xD (No really this document is magnified over 200% so I can type this. xD)

In the end, he made her pancakes. Pancakes – not crepes. Good, old, New York-style pancakes. (It was something she had discovered a love for during her time abroad with Audrey Bourgeois, and he had mastered the recipe after her first hangover with him.) And bacon. And maybe he scrambled up some eggs for her, too – just to show off.

They talked while he cooked. While she ate. About what had actually happened the night before: how she had gone out with Adrien to celebrate his birthday, how it had been the first time in weeks she had spent any time with him thanks to his schedule, and how the entire time they had been…formal. Distant. She told him it was because she was thinking of him and how much she’d rather be at his show instead of that dinner – at least on her part. She figured Adrien had wanted to be elsewhere, too. So, after they had gone back to her flat, they had maybe gotten a little amorous – and she had hated it, because she knew (on her part, at least) it was guilt-fueled and lacked any love that was no longer there. That hadn’t been there for a while. And then he had called her by her superhero alias, and it had broken her.

She was the most confident, bravest woman he knew, but she had always had a slight inferiority complex to her super self. She had gotten better about it over the years, but some insecurities ran deep. And when the guy who was supposed to love you – who was planning on marrying you – rubbed salt into those wounds, it was too much.

They’d started fighting – bad fighting. The kind of fighting that builds up for ages until it all boils over, and every little thing she’d been holding back spilled out. Every hurtful, mean thing – every true thing – every probably shouldn’t have been said but had to be thing. It was the kind of fighting most couples can’t come back from, and by that point she was confident she didn’t want to anyway. She’d stood in the farce her life had become, she said, and lit the match. She’d watched it burn and she hadn’t even cared. And then she’d left. She’d texted Juleka, found her at the pub, and the next thing she knew she was drinking. A lot. He knew the rest.

Which had led to more talking. About feelings she had been trying to push away since she was fifteen. About feelings he’d never really let go of but had allowed to take a back seat because she was with someone else and he thought she was happy. And she eased up on trying to get into his pants, but he was wiping some syrup from the corner of her mouth when her lips closed around his thumb, and the next thing either of them knew he had her bent back over the counter as he kissed her over and over and over again.

He could have gone on kissing her, too – probably more, as much as the saner part of his brain was screaming against it – had the banging not started on the door. Had Adrien not started shouting that he knew she was in there and just wanted to talk.

“…for all he knows you took me out for breakfast because you’re a bachelor with a pathetic excuse for a pantry,” she whispered at him, her hands squeezing where they rested on his arms. He sighed and dipped down, kissing her again.

…Juleka’s therapist was going to have a _field day_ with this one.

“I’m a pathetic excuse for a bachelor, then,” he mumbled, “since I actually enjoy cooking and keep my pantry pretty well-stocked.”

“Mari, please! I smell the bacon!” Adrien shouted through the door. She groaned and shoved him back, and he sighed as she went to the door. He took her empty plate over the sink and started washing up.

She loved him. He loved her. But Adrien still loved her, too, and now he just felt like a homewrecker.

_Chock another one up to shitty genes…_ he thought darkly, trying not to think of his father.

At the door, Adrien nearly fell into Marinette as she yanked the door open mid-knock. He hesitated, arm raised above her, and took in her appearance: Luka’s borrowed boxers, the strappy tank she had worn under her dress the night before, the kiss-bruised lips and…

“Oh my God,” he gasped, a look somewhere between horror, regret, and maybe a little disgust creeping onto his face. “You _did_ sleep with him! Luka, you asshole!”

“We did not, Adrien – Luka’s been the perfect gentlemen!” she snapped, tightening her hands on her elbows so she wouldn’t slap him. “Not that I wasn’t trying!”

“…what?” Adrien gaped at her, and she rolled her eyes. “Marinette, what are you saying?”

“Exactly what I told you last night and on the phone this morning,” she said. “We’re over, Adrien. I need you to accept that and move on. I am.”

“I was going to propose!” he cried, and the worst part was she knew he honestly felt that made a difference.

“Because you felt obligated to! Because we’ve been together forever and it was the logical next step – what your father expected of you! It wasn’t because you honestly wanted to marry me!” she snapped.

“I love you!” he cried, though it didn’t sound like he meant it. It didn’t sound like it used to, when they were kids – like it did when Luka had sighed it in her ear not minutes before.

“You love Ladybug!” she shouted, and she winced at the appalled look on his face. She glanced around the hallway before she tugged him inside, slamming the door. “God, you piss me off sometimes!”

“Marinette, please,” he sighed, reaching for her – but she stepped back. Away from his eager hands and searching look. “M’Lady. Please. We can work this out. Come back. Come home. We –”

“I can’t come back,” she said harshly, glaring at him. “We don’t have a home. I live with Alya, and you live with your father. There is no more _we_, Adrien.”

“But –”

“And how dare you show up here accusing Luka of anything! He’s your friend, Adrien! How could you be such an ass?” she bit. She heard a clatter from the kitchen – like a dish dropping against the sink. It wasn’t fair to Luka, having this conversation so close where he could hear everything. She hadn’t been fair to Luka since she’d ordered her first drink.

“Because you went to _him!_ You _always_ go to him! You accuse me of loving Ladybug more than I love you, but at least you’re both the same person! Luka isn’t me, Marinette, and you choose him over me every damn time!” Adrien huffed. Marinette did slap him then.

“You made it easy to!” she bit. “You’re the one who was always emotionally and physically distant, Adrien! Always putting your career and your father’s wishes above me! You left me alone _all the damn time_, so of course I went to Luka! He’s always been a great friend, and he was there!”

…it was a low blow, and they both knew it.

Adrien sighed and reached up, pinching the bridge of his nose as he took a few deep breaths. Marinette leaned back against the wall, staring at where her pumps rested against Luka’s boots so she wouldn’t have to look at Adrien. They looked like they belonged there. Like they’d always belonged there.

“Look,” Adrien finally said, still pinching his nose. “We’re both upset. We’re both tired. You’re probably still a little drunk –”

“I’m perfectly sober,” she huffed, and he squeezed his eyes shut tighter.

“I’ll go, and we’ll finish this conversation later,” he sighed.

“The conversation’s over, Adrien,” she said. She tried not to think about how he was just trying to run away again. “We’ve said all we need to say.”

“You can’t mean that,” he pleaded. She pressed closer to the wall when he stepped towards her.

“I didn’t sleep with him, Adrien, but I wanted to,” she said. It was enough to make Adrien stop. “I really wanted to. I offered to, I’m pretty sure. Multiple times. But he respects you too much to take me up on the offer.”

“He still kissed you,” Adrien said darkly, and Marinette rolled her eyes.

“Only the last time,” she said quietly. “I was the instigator through all of this, Adrien. Don’t be mad at Luka because I’m a horrible person.”

“You’re not –” he started, but her derisive laugh cut him off.

“I kinda am,” she said weakly. “At least right now. I didn’t handle this well. This should have gone better. For everyone involved.”

He had to agree with her there.

“Maybe someday we can all laugh about it,” she sighed, “but for right now I need you to leave. I’ll see you if there’s an akuma, but I need you to leave, Adrien.”

_It’s what you’re good at_, she thought, but she was kind enough to not say it. She could give him that small mercy, at least.

When he was gone and the door was locked, she found Luka leaning over the sink, staring into the murky water. She walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his chest, pressing her cheek against his back.

“I shouldn’t have kissed you,” he sighed, even as she pressed a kiss just below his shoulder blade, where his tattoo started. Her lips felt like fire against his skin – everywhere she touched was burning. “Damn it, Marinette.”

“Don’t hate yourself for this,” she said, kissing him again. “You feel too deeply sometimes. This one’s on me, not you. He’ll understand that eventually. It takes two to end a relationship.”

“It takes two to start one, too,” he sighed, reaching up to grasp her hands. She giggled, pressing her face against his back.

“It takes three to really complicate things,” she snickered. He rolled his eyes and turned around, pulling her against his chest.

“You should go,” he sighed. “Before we really do complicate things.”

“They’re already complicated,” she said. She looked up at him. “Do you want me to go?”

“…no,” he sighed. “Doesn’t mean you should stay.”

“I’ll give him a head start,” she said, resting her head against his chest. “I like where I’m at right now.”

…he did, too. That was the problem.


	15. 15 Oct: "That's what I'm talking about!"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Jagged is asked to do a family ancestry reality show, Luka has Questions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “That’s what I’m talking about!”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: So I have this coworker who has been on a WILD ride with Ancestry DNA – like it’s a Lifetime movie, y’all. (Her son convinced her to do the test last Christmas, and since then she’s discovered she was the product of an affair and has this whole other family on the other side of the country. It’s had the BEST possible resolution, though – they’ve been talking for months, are actually meeting over the holidays, and they’re all so excited to get to know her.) Anyway, it kinda got me thinking…like, Papa Stone. And Luka’s been on stage with him for YEARS but neither Jagged nor Anarka have ever given him a straight answer to the “ARE YOU MY DADDY?” question. And…I live for shenanigans of all kinds, guys. (I stand by the opinion that Luka would expect NOTHING of Jagged, but there’s a difference between expecting something and having peace of mind/knowing for sure.)

“This is a bad idea, Luka,” Marinette sighed, watching him fold up the packet.

“It’s been seven years, Mari,” he said. He pressed the seal on the envelope, running his thumb along it with a definitive press. There was something final about the gesture – something almost cathartic. “_Seven_ years.”

“Seven awesome years,” she said. She was sitting on the couch beside him, bent over with her elbow on her knee and her chin in her hand. Her hair was tossed up into a messy bun, at least four different colored pencils poking out of it. She had emerged from her creative cocoon to find him filling out the paperwork in the living room, and she had been trying to talk him out of submitting it for the better part of half an hour. “Luka…if they wanted you to know, one of them would have told you by now. Isn’t it better to just let it be?”

“Ma’s too proud to admit to it, and Jagged’s…Jagged,” he sighed. He left the envelope on the table and leaned back, reaching an arm around the back of the sofa and wigging his fingers at her in an invitation. She didn’t move. “Mari, this might be my only chance to find out. To know for sure.”

Marinette stared at the envelope, her eyebrows furrowed. Jagged had been approached by another reality TV show a few weeks prior. _Know Your Roots_ was all about taking celebrities and tracing their family histories, from actual records to DNA tests that could pinpoint exactly where they were from. Penny, knowing how popular the show and things like that were now, had told him it could be a good idea, so he had agreed. He’d been having a blast, learning more about his family tree, and Marinette was happy for him. She really was.

Except it had sparked – or re-sparked, she should say – this obsession in Luka. He had had suspicions when Jagged had first blown into his life at seventeen. After the mess with Desperada, he had confronted his mother: was Jagged Stone his father? Anarka had dodged the question, dancing around the accusations like a Braavosi swordsman. He had even tried to pin Jagged down to an answer – not directly, of course, but more in general terms: what kind of relationship did you have with my mother? How serious were you? Was it just professional? But, of course, Jagged being Jagged, was even better at evading the question than Anarka had been. Eventually Luka had let it go, but the questions – the doubt – had always lingered in the back of his mind.

It had only gotten worse when he’d graduated lycée and Jagged had invited him on tour. He’d been working with Jagged for years now – it had been seven years since his bus had first pulled up outside the Liberty – and Luka was still no closer to an answer.

His mom had left his dad before she knew she was pregnant. That was the story he’d always gotten. His dad was the unreliable type, and Anarka had always been fiercely independent, so she had never sought him out. Their paths had crossed by chance a couple years later, and instead of telling him about the baby they’d spent a weekend reliving the past – and by the time Anarka had known about Juleka their mystery dad was gone again.

“I mean…it both does and doesn’t sound like something Jagged would do,” Marinette had sighed when Luka had first started ranting about it again when Jagged had first announced he’d do the show. “Not intentionally, but especially if Ma never told him…and now it’s been so long he probably wouldn’t know how to handle it. Especially since you’ve been in his life so long already.”

“That’s what I’m talking about!” Luka had huffed. “Jules and I deserve to know! I don’t expect him to step up or anything – I love Jagged regardless. He’s a great mentor and he’s done so much for my career.”

“But?” Marinette had pressed.

“I gotta know, Mari,” he’d sighed. “I don’t need a dad – I don’t. But I still…I just gotta know.”

And now here they were, an envelope containing Luka’s DNA and the appropriate paperwork sitting on the coffee table before them.

“If you send this in…Lu, there’s no coming back from this,” she said, tapping her fingers against her chin.

“I know, darning,” he sighed. She looked back at him, and he wiggled his fingers again. She rolled her eyes and leaned back, cuddling into his side. He smiled as he wrapped his arm around her, those fingers pressing into her shoulder. “But I gotta know, and neither of them are ever going to tell me.”

“Will you tell them?” she asked. He gave her a look, and she bobbed her head a moment. “I get Ma probably knows. But Jagged? Will you tell him?”

“I get the feeling he’s happier not knowing,” Luka sighed. Mari bit her lip.

“But…if you send this to the same company the TV show’s using, and they find out…you know they’ll tell him,” she said. She looked up at him, her eyes worried. “It’s reality TV – those shows exist for this type of drama. You have to at least tell Penny. Give her a head’s up.”

“I’ll tell Penny,” he agreed, nodding. He groaned and flopped his head back on the couch. “She’s gonna have a field day. Can you imagine what they’re going to tell Dylan?”

“That Uncle Luka is actually Brother Luka?” she asked, and she giggled as he pressed his face against her neck and blew out a breath.

“You make it sound like I’m joining the priesthood,” he griped.

“Don’t do that,” she laughed, scooting into his lap and pulling his face towards hers for a kiss. “I’d so miss doing this if you did.”

He continued kissing her for a few moments, but then she was pulling away and resting her forehead on his own.

“Tell her before you send it out,” she sighed, giving him another quick kiss. “Please.”

“Fine,” he sighed. He leaned up to kiss by her ear, just below at the height of her neck, and she groaned as she leaned against him. “But I’m still sending it out. I have to know, Marinette.”


	16. 16 Oct: "Listen.  No, really listen."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nino's been Marinette's friend since kindergarten. Of course he has dirt on her. Luka isn't sure if he should be amused or horrified.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Listen. No, really listen.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Nino Lahiffe/Alya Césaire  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen (because the double date takes place at a bar and Nino’s kinda drunk)  
Notes/Warnings: So apparently, when I was like four or five, I swore up and down Michael Jackson was my boyfriend. Hindsight, adult me finds this deeply horrifying and absolutely hilarious.

Marinette had known the moment Alya suggested it going on a double date would be a terrible, horrible, no-good, Very Bad Idea. She should have said no. Right from the beginning, when Alya first got that excited look in her eye, Marinette should have firmly shaken her head, crossed her arms, and answered her best friend’s request with a firm, resounding, _“Hell. No.”_

_Especially_ when alcohol became involved.

For his part, Luka just looked amused. Entirely too amused. Like…_this was going to come back to bite her in the ass later_-amused.

“Listen. No, really,” Nino said, leaning forward and pointing a finger in their general direction. His eyes squinted behind his glasses, and Marinette realized he had reached the double-vision part of his inebriation. (She had yet to have a single drink. Luka had volunteered to be the responsible member of their party, but she had learned on her eighteenth birthday that she was a total light-weight. It was a miracle if Alya could convince her to take a single shot these days.) Nino squinted, settled on the Luka he thought was the real one, and pointed at the post behind the loveseat Luka and Marinette were seated on. “_Listen._”

“I’m listening,” Luka chuckled. Alya grinned as she returned from the bar, tapping a drink in front of Marinette with a wink. Marinette glared at her and cuddled closer into Luka’s side.

“Adrien wasn’t Mari’s first celebrity crush,” Nino said sagely, nodding as if he was about to depart some universal wisdom. Marinette felt her stomach drop to her feet.

“_Nino_,” she hissed. Luka gave her an amused look, squeezing her shoulder. She groaned and hid her face against his neck. This was why you don’t stay friends with people who knew you in kindergarten: too many incriminating stories. Nino had a lifetime of them on her by this point, especially when he started dating her best friend. (They were one of those annoying couples that told each other _everything_.)

“What?” Alya asked, giggling in delight. “I had no idea! Mari, who was it? Who did you go gaga over before Adrikins?”

“I’m going to kill you all,” she groaned.

“I am kinda curious,” Luka chuckled. Nino’s grin turned wicked as he leaned closer to the table between them.

“_Jagged Stone_,” he said before falling back onto his own couch, cackling. Alya’s shriek covered Marinette’s groan, and if she had bothered looking at her boyfriend she would have seen the warring looks of horror and delight dancing in his eyes.

“No,” he said, and she groaned again.

“I was five!” she whined.

“Mari, that’s my dad!” he laughed. “Your first celebrity crush was my _father_?”

“I didn’t know you then!” she cried. “We didn’t even know he was your dad until like a year after we met! It doesn’t count!”

“Oh, it totally counts!” Nino cackled. “You used to doodle _Marinette Stone_ in your notebooks, dudette!”

Marinette wanted to punch the grin off Luka’s face. She shoved at him, falling onto the arm of the loveseat in an attempt to get away from him.

“Well, if I actually took his name you could still get your wish,” he said, and he laughed when she kicked at him. He grabbed at her feet, and her whines turned into giggles as he tickled her legs. He tugged at her, pulling her legs into his lap and leaning down to grin at her. “You could still be _Marinette Stone_. Jagged would have a field day.”

“You are _not_ allowed to tell him,” she huffed, squirming in an attempt to kick him again. He reached for the arm resting on her stomach and yanked her up into his lap. Her breath left her in a whoosh as he settled her against him. “Or Penny. Or Juleka. Or anyone, ever. Nino, I’m going to kill you.”

“I think it’s adorable,” he chuckled, kissing her cheek. “We all had embarrassing celebrity crushes, darning. Ma says I used to say I was gonna marry Madonna.”

“No way,” she said, shaking her head. He nodded solemnly and she tried to smother her laughs against his shoulder. “No way!”

“She’s not secretly your ma, is she? ‘Cause at least my former celebrity crush has no way of ruining any future plans,” he teased, squeezing her closer. He schooled his expression into a look of mock horror. “…Mari. You’re not just stringing me along in an attempt to get closer to Jagged, are you?”

“I knew him first, you dork,” she groaned, punching him again. “Besides, I’m much more interested in becoming a _Couffaine_, not a _Stone_.”

“Good thing Jagged is Luka’s pops – now you can be both!” Alya wheezed. Marinette grabbed an ice cube from the drink she still hadn’t touched and chucked it at her. Alya shrieked when it landed in her bra. “Not cool, Mari! Not cool!”

“Looks plenty cool to me, babe!” Nino laughed, and Alya rolled her eyes as she fished out the ice and threw it at him.

“Adrien’s been horrible for your sense of humor, babe,” she said. Mari twisted slightly so she could look at Alya while remaining comfortably in Luka’s arms.

“Well, ok, then, missy,” she huffed, “who was _your_ childhood celebrity crush?”

“Spiderman,” Alya sniffed, sipping her drink. She grinned at Nino. “And aren’t you glad, too? At least when you crush on comic book characters there’s no real life missing father to sweep your girl off her feet.”

Marinette was going to kill all of them.


	17. 17 Oct: "There is just something about her."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka plays Marinette's song for Jagged. They both agree it's not a song for the keys.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “There is just something about them/her/him.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Ties into 10/13. There’s this bit in Matt Nathanson’s “Way Way Back” that goes, “I’m sure he’s easier than I was, if you like that sort of thing. He looks better with his shirt off – yeah, but can he sing?” And I was trying so hard to fit that in somewhere, but it just didn’t work. (Give it time. It’ll happen.)

Luka pulled his lower lip between his teeth as he silently tapped a finger against the keys. His eyes darted back and forth, but he wasn’t really looking at the piano he was seated at. He was chasing notes, following chords, making conversions…he thought he could make it work. It would be worth the try, at least.

(_Everything_ involving her was worth the try, but that was beside the point.)

He took a breath, pushed it out through his nose with his eyes closed, and laid his hands on the keys. The music was halting at first, a little jilted, but after a moment it came together. It wasn’t _bad_, but it still sounded…off. It wasn’t the same. It was…

Blonde hair and green eyes flashed in his mind, and he yanked his fingers off the keys with a discordant clang. His lips pressed together in a hard frown.

“Definitely not your best,” Jagged called as he entered the room. Luka jumped and looked back at him, his lips nearly white with his frown. Jagged’s smile was as easy-going as ever. He walked over to the piano and leaned on the lid, nodding at the keys. “Still good, though. What was it?”

“…Marinette,” Luka said, looking back at the keys. Jagged’s grin split his face, all teeth and excitement. Luka rolled his eyes as he tried playing it again. “I wrote it for her a while ago. I had trouble pinning it down at first, but the look on her face the first time I played it for her…”

The song sounded easier, but it still wasn’t the same. He saw Marinette’s smile in his mind, heard the chords weaving together as the song of her heart danced in his head. He could hear her _so clearly_ in his mind, but the music coming from his fingers paled in comparison. It just didn’t work as a piano piece – it was _wrong_. Jagged’s smile softened, his eyes getting distant as he looked back at the door.

“Yeah…” he sighed, thinking of caramel-colored eyes and purple hair.

“There’s just something about her,” Luka continued, and Jagged nodded.

“Yeah,” he said again. He shoved himself away from the piano. “Right! I get we’re trying to get you better on the keys, but I need to hear this song.”

Luka looked at him in confusion, and he jumped again when Jagged crossed the room to toss a guitar at him. He caught the instrument – worth more than he could earn making deliveries for a year – and gawked at Jagged. Jagged just winked at him.

“You’re a guitar man, m’boy,” he said. He crossed his arms and stood before him, nodding towards the guitar. “And, despite the temporary insanity when I first met her, Mari didn’t fall for a piano man. Play me how she’s supposed to sound.”

Luka rolled his eyes before settling the guitar on his lap. He didn’t have to think to play Marinette’s song – he’d had it memorized a long time ago. His fingers danced along the strings, a song of hope and sunshine smiles and eyes clear as the summer sky. Gentle kisses by the river, late night phone calls as they hammered out creative projects, giggles at corny jokes and musical nerd-outs, breathless expositions on why one type of fabric was better than another. A strong undercurrent of determination, fierce loyalty, and unending courage. A girl who could still break under the pressure but would always bounce back. It wasn’t exactly the same song he’d first played her all that time ago, but she wasn’t exactly the same girl that had first stumbled into his cabin. They were both growing, changing, but still quintessentially _her_.

“Damn,” Jagged whistled when the song tapered off. Luka glanced up at him, and Jagged smirked. “You’ve got it _bad_.”

“Shut up, old man,” Luka grumbled, and Jagged cackled as sat on the piano bench, nudging him over. He tapped the lid.

“Hop on up,” he said. “It still sounds better on the guitar, but I think we can play with it a bit…if you really want to play it on the piano.”

_“‘Keys’ doesn’t sound as cool as ‘Strings’…”_

She was right. The keys were nice, and they made a great accompaniment to enhance certain songs, but he didn’t think this was one of them. Marinette hadn’t sounded her best until she’d left the keys behind, anyway.

“I’m always down to jam,” he said, settling onto the lid of the piano. He kept the guitar in his lap, picking at random strings. “But I think you’re right. This is one I shouldn’t mess with. Besides – I want to hear Penny’s song.”

Jagged rolled his eyes and grinned up at him.

“You asked for it,” he said, and Luka laughed as he broke out a full-blown sonata. It wasn’t long before they were lost in the music, riffing off the other and playing any and everything that popped into their minds. Neither noticed when Penny entered the room until she tapped Jagged on the shoulder. His face lit up when he saw her.

“Penny! What’s up, darling?” Jagged asked, pulling her down for a quick kiss. Luka smirked, thinking of his own _darning_. Penny held her phone out for Jagged to see, and his grin widened as he shot a guilty look to Luka. “Whoops.”

“What?” Luka asked, and he laughed when Jagged passed him the phone. Marinette’s text chain was pulled up.

_Hey, Pen. Our boys at it again? Luka’s 20m late for our date. I’m hungry._

“Whoops,” Luka chuckled, grinning as he handed Penny back her phone. She thwapped the back of Jagged’s head and ruffled Luka’s hair affectionately.

“You’re lucky she’s the creative type and understands,” she said. She pointed to the door. “Now shoo. Don’t keep the girl waiting.”

She didn’t have to tell him twice.


	18. 18 Oct: "Sssecretsss?  I love sssecretsss."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette makes Luka a birthday present, but is wary of showing Sass - he's shit at keeping secrets, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Secrets? I love secrets.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Sass, Tikki  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Ugh was trying to get this up before my eye appointment today, but that didn’t happen. Apologizing again if anything glaring is missed – my eyes are still a little jacked up from the appointment, and editing happened after the fact. (But hey, have some kwami fluff/Sassypants. I love that lil’ guy.)

“What’re you doing, Marinette?”

Marinette looked up at Tikki’s voice, smiling at her kwami. She looked back at the page before her and smiled.

“It’s a secret,” she said, winking at her. Sass popped up beside Tikki, peeking down at the sketchbook. Marinette tipped the sketchbook back against her chest before he could see anything.

“Sssssecretssss? I love ssssecretssss,” he hissed, and Marinette giggled as she tapped her pencil against the turquoise kwami’s head.

“Sass, you’re _horrible_ at keeping secrets,” she said. The kwami frowned at her, his tail flicking behind him in agitation.

“I am not,” he pouted. Tikki giggled beside him.

“You kind of are, Sass,” she said. His frown deepened, and Marinette held out her palm for him. When he settled in her hand, she lifted him up to press a kiss against his head. His tail curled around her wrist as he smiled.

“We love you anyway, Sass,” she said. Still, she kept the page away from the kwami. “It’s for Luka. His birthday is next week.”

Sass’s face lit up in delight.

“Masssster’ssss birthday? He has not sssssaid anything!” he hissed. Marinette giggled and sunk down into the couch.

“He’s not big on birthdays,” she said. “But I’m still trying to surprise him, so I’m sorry, Sass, but _no peeking_.”

“I can keep a ssssecret!” Sass cried. Tikki giggled and flew up beside him, kissing his cheek. He frowned at her. “I can!”

Marinette considered him for a moment. It was only a week. And Luka was going to be extremely busy over that week – including four days where he wouldn’t even be home, thanks to an out of town gig. It might not hurt…

“Ok,” she said, nodding. She tipped back the page, and Sass’s smile was wide as he flew over to her shoulder. He let out a tiny little gasp as he saw the design on the page. Marinette giggled and scratched his head again. “Think he’ll like it?”

“Missssstresssss, Massssster will _love_ it,” Sass said, smiling up at her. His tail twitched eagerly, tickling against her shoulder, and she giggled as she kissed his head.

“I think so, too,” she said with a wink.

– V –

Of course, Sass really was _terrible_ at keeping secrets – unless they were secrets pertaining to the Miracle Box and his fellow kwamis. Those secrets he was actually good with – he’d take them to his proverbial grave.

But when it came to secrets between Luka and Marinette? Or secrets in general? Sass made it maybe three, four hours before he almost blew it. Marinette was holed up in the studio (a spare room in the flat they had divided between them: one half a little home recording studio, the other a sewing space, because they enjoyed working together) when Luka got home, and Sass immediately flew up to him in an excited greeting.

“Masssster, Masssster! You did not say your birthday was approaching!” he cried. Luka blinked at him, a bemused look on his face.

“It…didn’t cross my mind?” he hazarded. Honestly, he hadn’t realized it was as close as it was. His own birthday had never really been that big of a deal to him. Sass’s tail swished behind him. Luka chuckled and reached up to scratch his head as he dropped his keys in the dish by the door. “Sorry, buddy. Guess it slipped my mind. How’d you find out, anyway?”

“Missstresss is making –” Sass began to say, but an excited (panicked) squeal cut him off.

“Luka, welcome home!” Tikki cried, zipping past Sass to crash into Luka’s cheek. She turned and shot a warning look to her fellow kwami, who gulped before disappearing. “Marinette’s in the studio, but you’re not allowed in. She’s working on a surprise!”

“Ah, Mari,” he said, chuckling. “Of course she’s the one who told you.”

“She loves you very much and wants to celebrate,” Tikki giggled, and Luka smiled fondly.

“I guess I have no choice, then,” he said. Tikki giggled again as she followed him into the flat. He paused in the living room and looked at the door to the studio. A large sign stating _KEEP OUT!_ was taped up. He rolled his eyes and raised his voice to call, “Mari! I’m home, darning!”

“I’ll be out in a minute!” she called back. Tikki settled on his shoulder as he went into the kitchen.

“You’re gonna love your present,” the kwami said. She rolled her eyes fondly. “As long as Sass doesn’t ruin the surprise.”

“He is shit at keeping secrets,” Luka hummed. Tikki giggled as he handed her a cookie.

“He really is.”

– V –

Which led to three days, not counting the four he was out of town and his kwami didn’t have an opportunity to ruin the surprise anyway, where Sass avoided Luka at all costs. In the end, though, when Luka opened his gift and the other three saw the pure delight on his face, they could all agree it was worth it. He lifted the kilt from the bag and cackled, admiring the way the scales in the center shimmered under the light.

“Mari, I love it!” he laughed. Greenish-yellow diamonds that glinted like Sass’s eyes in the night darted down the black sides, and teal scales covered the center. It wasn’t exactly like his super suit, but it was close enough that anyone could see the nod towards the snake hero. He loved it. She leaned over and kissed his cheek.

“There’s more,” she said, handing him a smaller bag. A kilt pin shaped like Viperion’s lyre was in a small box inside, but it was the sporran that had him laughing again. Teal scales covered the flap, but the base of the bag was black – and a tiny ladybug crawling over Marinette’s signature flowers was embroidered on the corner. Her cheeks were pink when he looked back at her.

“_Darning,_” he breathed, and she smiled shyly at him.

“Do you like it?” she asked, and he dipped towards her to capture her lips in a kiss.

“I love it,” he said. “I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Luka is Scottish and totally wears kilts: https://verfound.tumblr.com/post/187864629022/someone-said-luka-was-part-scottish-no-look-i


	19. 19 Oct: "Yes, I admit it, you were right."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka's pretty sure he just blew an aneurysm. Did Marinette just say she wanted to marry him? (Cont. of 10/16.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Yes, I admit it, you were right.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen (for makeouts and slight swearing)  
Notes/Warnings: Continuation of 10/16, because Quick wanted to see Luka’s reaction. (I mean it was the timer’s fault, but he did get suspiciously quiet after Mari made that comment…) And Chubs, still no more Drunkinette, but hopefully this one'll do. C:

_“Besides, I’m much more interested in becoming a _Couffaine,_ not a _Stone_.”_

She had said it so easily. And sure, he had implied the same thing not moments before, with his jokes about future plans and Marinette becoming _Marinette Stone_, but to actually hear her say it…she wanted to be a Couffaine. She wanted to be part of his family – officially, legally (because she already was, in all the ways that mattered to him). She wanted to _marry_ him. Well, his brain had just shut down after that.

And as she continued to rag on Alya about _her_ childhood crush not counting because Spiderman (and yell at Nino to shut up as he started a rousing chorus of _Mari and Jagged, sittin’ in a tree_), Luka had blindly reached for the drink Alya had brought Marinette. He wasn’t even thinking about promising to be the sober party that evening as he downed it. He didn’t even register the slightly concerned look Marinette gave him as he excused himself and returned with another (rum and coke that time, not whatever fruity nightmare Alya had been trying to force on Marinette).

The ring he’d taken to carrying around in his pocket felt heavier than ever. He wondered how annoyed she’d get if he just slipped it on right then. She’d been against this double date from the beginning, so derailing it for a proposal would probably be a welcome early end to the evening.

“Ooooh, I love this song!” Alya suddenly shouted, slamming her drink on the table. She grabbed Nino’s hands and yanked him up from the couch. He was just drunk enough to lose his footing and topple into her. “C’mon, babe, we’re dancing! Mari, you in?”

“He’s a public safety hazard and should remain benched,” Marinette declared, curling closer into his side. “I’m happy here. We’ll join you in a bit.”

“Watch our shit!” Alya cried as she tugged Nino to the dance floor. Marinette sighed as she leaned against him.

“Yes, I admit it,” she said, her head falling against his shoulder. “You were right.”

“I was?” he asked, confused. His mind was still on ten, fifteen minutes ago, with her claiming she wanted to be a _Couffaine_. Damn, he wanted that, too… “About what?”

“Maybe a night out with Alya and Nino was a good idea,” she said. She leaned up and pressed her lips to the underside of his jaw. His eyes closed, a smile – ok, a dopey grin – curling his lips at the gesture. “I’ve been overworking myself. I needed a break.”

“I just wanted a night with you,” he admitted. Because deadlines had been looming all month, and he really hadn’t seen that much of her (aside from bringing her dinner at the office because he knew she wasn’t eating like she should), and he’d missed her. Their flat was never really _lonely_, what with a Miracle Box full of kwamis to keep them company (no one could ever really be lonely with Xuppu zipping about), but it was a different kind of lonely when she wasn’t there. He would have been fine with an evening at home watching some stupid movie, but Alya had insisted on the double date, so he would take the time where he could get it. “Alya and Nino didn’t matter.”

“Ugh, I wish you had said something before Nino got drunk,” she groaned. She pressed her face against his neck, and he chuckled as his hand came up to rub her back. “I can’t believe he told you that…”

“I’m glad he did,” he said. He shifted slightly, pulling her into his lap and grinning down at her. “Ok, my turn. I admit you were right.”

“I’m always right – isn’t that the rule?” she grinned up at him with a wink. “What about, though?”

“I’m much more interested in you becoming a Couffaine, too,” he said. He slipped his arms around her waist and held her tight. She stared up at him with wide eyes, her cheeks dusting pink. “Did you mean it, Mari? I know we’ve talked vaguely about it, but…did you mean it?”

“I’m insulted you even have to ask,” she huffed in a whisper, and before he could continue she was kissing him. It was a searing kiss, and he chuckled into her mouth as she knocked them back with how she lunged at him. He didn’t even notice his head knocking against the arm of the loveseat as her hand curled around the back of his neck and slid up, her fingers threading through his hair. She pulled back enough to murmur against his lips, “Whenever you’re ready. I mean, my parents will probably want something with more warning, but I’ll go to a courthouse with you tonight if you’d like.”

She pushed herself up in sudden excitement, and he gawked up at her as her fingers curled over his heart. _Tonight?_ (Tonight could be good…) A dazzling grin was stretching her lips, blinding him more than the summer sun on the open sea. He wondered if she felt his heart stutter under her touch.

“Lu,” she gasped breathlessly, “Ma’s technically a captain, right? She could marry us tonight! We could go now – do you think she would?”

What the hell had been in that drink? He hadn’t even finished the rum and coke, and he was fairly certain he wasn’t drunk yet…

“Marinette, darning,” he breathed, reaching up to lay a hand on her cheek. His brain was short-circuiting. It wasn’t fair when she smiled at him like that. “Are you sure?”

“You have the ring, right? Let’s do this,” she said firmly, bending to kiss him again. A little whine caught in the back of his throat when her hand traced down his side, her teeth nipping at his lips when she reached his pocket and felt the box there. “Sass said you’ve been carrying it around. I mean it, Luka. I’m ready to be Marinette Couffaine tonight. If you think Ma’ll do it, let’s go to the Liberty right now.”

“I’m going to kill that little snitch,” he mumbled against her lips. “He is absolute _shit_ at keeping secrets.”

“You love him and you know it,” she giggled. He kissed her again, burying his fingers in her hair to pull her close.

“No, I love _you_ and you know it,” he breathed. He nodded, rubbing their noses together as he pressed his forehead to her own. “All right. Let’s do it. I’ll call Ma on the way.”

She squealed as she launched off of him, and he laughed as she ran to the dance floor, crying, “Alya! Nino! C’mon – we’re getting married!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t worry. I’m sure Anarka will make sure Tom and Sabine are there. She’s a pirate, not crazy. C; (Marinette Agreste has the big, fancy wedding that takes over a year to plan and has all the pomp and circumstance demanded by the father-in-law’s clout. Marinette Couffaine? Anarka marries them spur of the moment, and the only hold up is figuring out how to turn some old guitar strings into wedding rings while they wait for Tom and Sabine to get there.)


	20. 20 Oct: "You could talk about it, you know."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She could tell him everything. Or nothing. Sometimes he just wished she'd tell him _something_, though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “You could talk about it, you know?”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Damn them S3 finale feels, right? (Angsty. Kinda hurt/comfort. Look I had Michelle Branch’s “I Want Tears” on for some reason while working on this, and things got Influenced. Quick post-n-dash today because they’re tapering me off the one eye drop but started me on two more for a couple weeks, and I think I’m reacting to the one poorly (but yay weekends so no consultation ‘til tomorrow). Ugh I’m sick of my eyes acting up. You never realize how exhausted they can make you until they’re buttheads.)

He had told her once, a long time ago, that she could tell him everything. Or nothing. Whatever she was comfortable with. She could be herself with him – he loved herself, after all. And he’d meant it.

But…there were times, as the years dragged on and he saw the toll the Miracle Box took on her, that he wished she could tell him everything. Because she couldn’t, in the end. Those were the Rules. He knew that and respected it, and even if he knew more than he could ever let on he couldn’t actually tell her that. So he stayed a constant presence by her side, silent and understanding, and opened his arms whenever the days got too rough and she’d give him that Look. The one that said she was exhausted and close to breaking, and he’d hold her together until she could stand on her own again.

It never got any easier. But for her, it was always all too easy.

He had a key to her flat, just like she had a key to his. He’d surprise her some nights, especially when the akumas were coming too frequently and deadlines were looming closer, with dinner or ice cream or even just a surprise visit for some much-needed cuddles. She came home to find him on her couch, his guitar in his lap as he worked out his newest song while he waited for her. He looked up to find her watching him, that look on her face again, and he sighed as he set the guitar aside. He held up his arms, and she was crying before she’d even collapsed onto his lap.

“…you could talk about it, you know,” he whispered against her hair, pressing his lips to the crown of her head. She stilled in his arms, and he pulled her closer. “You don’t have to. You know you never have to. But…it might help. You’re incredibly strong and so brave, Marinette, but you can’t always carry this burden alone.”

“I’m not alone,” she mumbled, pressing her face into his shirt, and he sighed again.

She was right. She had Chat Noir, probably the only other person who understood the full-time burden she was under as well as she did – except they both knew he didn’t, not really. Chat had always found freedom in his Miraculous, ironically the lighter side of their balance for the black-clad hero. Ladybug’s powers had always come with more responsibility, and Marinette taking possession of the Miracle Box – becoming the Guardian – had only ever made it worse. Chat could understand to an extent, but he would never be as burdened by his Miraculous as his partner. She had the kwamis to confide in, but they could only understand so much. The pressures of their burden weren’t the same when viewed through the immortal eyes of a god, never as heavy as they were on passing mortal shoulders. And Luka…well, Viperion was a part-time hero. And even if he knew, for everyone’s safety (and, he thought sometimes from what Sass had said, some magical, cursed implications) he could never actually vocalize it. He couldn’t share the burden of Ladybug like he shared the burden of Marinette, much as it killed him.

“I just wish I could do more,” he said. Nights like this he always felt inadequate. She shifted, straddling his lap as she took his face in her hands and kissed him soundly.

“You do plenty,” she whispered. She kissed him again, drawing her lips along his jaw and down his neck until her head rested against his shoulder. “Just being here is enough. You’re enough.”

“I hate seeing you so upset,” he sighed, tightening his grip on her waist. “I wish I could carry this for you. Whatever’s breaking you down, I wish could alleviate it.”

“Knowing I have you to come home to is enough,” she said. “It’s enough, Luka. This time with you, just being with you, is enough. It makes the rest of it not so bad.”

Because they weren’t always bad days. There were days she came home and found him making pancakes for dinner, and she laughed so hard at the sight of him there in the frilly pink apron that she tackled him against the sink, peppering his mouth with delighted kisses until he complained she was going to make him burn dinner. Or the time he came home to find her hanging curtains the color of the summer Mediterranean in his flat, and her only excuse was, _“It’s been two years, Luka – decorate your damn home.”_ He’d scooped her off the stool she’d been using and spun her around the living room, and the flat had never sounded more like home than it did with her delighted squeals bouncing off the walls. There were enough bad days, but there were enough good days, too.

“You could talk about it, you know,” he told her when it got too bad, but she just leaned up to press a lingering kiss against his lips.

“I could,” she agreed, “but you already know, and you’re here, and that’s enough.”


	21. 21 Oct: "Change is annoyingly difficult."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The problem with establishing your brand at fifteen is, when you go to get married, everyone already knows you by your maiden name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Change is annoyingly difficult.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: Fluff. A dick joke at the end. I had a friend in school who, instead of saying she was getting married, always said she was “getting a penis” (her fiancé was always introduced as her penis). Aaand still can’t really see out of my right eye, so hopefully nothing glaring was missed. (Thank God the left is overcompensating. xD )

The problem with starting your fashion empire when you’re fifteen is that everyone knows MDC is Marinette _Dupain-Cheng_. The problem with being ‘discovered’ by your rock idol (and potential father – seven years on and Luka still couldn’t get a straight answer from either of his ‘parents’) when you’re seventeen is that by the time he was twenty-four and a solo artist everyone knew Luka was _Luka Couffaine_. (Despite the hot second Jagged had jokingly entertained the idea of Luka being his son and had suggested he go public as _Luka Stone_, but Luka couldn’t tell if he was serious and was too proud of the Couffaine name to actually do it.)

Being a public figure – a bit of a celebrity (in certain if not all circles, at least) – _sucked_.

“You don’t have to take my name,” Luka chuckled as she flopped back on their bed. She held her sketchpad above her head, eyes crossing at the logos she had been playing with for the better part of the night.

Everyone knew MDC.

_MCDC_ was mouthy and sounded dumb. (Though Luka had loved it and played a few bars from _You Shook Me All Night Long_ when she had mentioned it.)

_MC_ had a nice ring to it, and she loved the inside joke her musical soon-to-be husband would get, but the fashion world still already knew her as _MDC_.

_MDCC_ – or even _MDC2_ – sounded…dumb.

“I won’t be upset, darning,” he said, rolling over to coil around her side. She squirmed, giggling as his hair tickled her cheek. “We can be one of those thoroughly modern couples with different names and separate bank accounts and everything.”

“But I _want_ to take your last name,” she sighed, tracing a finger over where she had doodled _Marinette Couffaine_ in the corner of the page like the lovesick thirteen-year-old she used to be (instead of the lovesick twenty-two-year-old she currently was). She turned her head and grinned at him. “Change is annoyingly difficult.”

“It doesn’t have to be if you don’t take my name,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her. “Less paperwork to fill out, for one.”

“_I want to –_” she started to say again, but he cut her off with a kiss.

“What if _I_ want to take _yours?_” he asked. Her eyebrows rose at that, so he kissed her again. “I love you. I love your parents. I would be proud to be a Dupain-Cheng.”

“But your public name–” she started, and he shrugged. (Honestly, he didn’t care either way – she could be a Couffaine, he could be a Dupain-Cheng, or they could be Couffaine-Dupain-Cheng and call themselves the CDC. As long as she married him, he didn’t care what they went by.)

“You can keep MDC as the brand,” he said. He snatched her sketchbook away and dropped it on the floor by the bed. Any protest she went to make was cut off when he rolled onto her and silenced her with more kisses. “Stay MDC to the fashion world. But here? In this room? To us, our family, our friends? You’re Marinette Couffaine, if you want to be.”

“I love how that sounds when you say it,” she sighed, turning her head so he could have better access to her neck. He smiled against her skin, his hand coming up to clasp her own, squeezing as she sighed again.

…yeah, ok. He’d admit it: he loved how it sounded, too.

– V –

So Marinette became Marinette Couffaine to those who mattered, but to the public _MDC_ remained _MDC_. Of course, there were times she’d sign something or other (legal documents, usually) as _MC_, but if anyone asked why she dropped the _D_ from her initials, she’d get a secret little smile and say, “Oh, I became MC because I gained the D.”

(The first time she told Luka that story, he had fallen off the couch laughing. When he had finally been able to breathe again, Marinette had pinned him to the floor in an attempt to gain as much of _the D_ as possible.

“Chat Noir has been a _horrible_ influence to your sense of humor,” he’d cackled as she tried to distract him with kisses. “I love it.”)


	22. 22 Oct: "We could have a chance."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka thought they could have a chance. Marinette wasn't so sure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “We could have a chance.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K / G / All Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Ugh I’ve rewritten this like three times because I was trying to be fluffy and silly and not go with the default Angst. Featuring kwamis and pillow fights and A BABY.

“We could have a chance.”

Marinette glanced up at Luka from where they crouched behind the door. He was pressed against the wall, eyes peering out into the room beyond from the sliver they’d opened for surveillance. He shot a quick look down at her, his lips quirking wryly. Her grip tightened on the knob, and he shrugged helplessly.

“Well,” he said, looking back out into the living room, “we _could_.”

“It’s cute that you still think that after all this time,” she chided gently. She stood, leaning up to press a quick kiss against his cheek. She resumed her crouched position, looking around for any sight of the Enemy. “Strings, there’s nineteen of them and two of us.”

“Eighteen – Plagg’s in Hokkaido,” Luka said. He glanced down at his chest, where their secret weapon was snuggled in a baby björn that looked like a 10k egg from Pokémon Go (10k because the purple reminded him of Juleka, the egg for Sass, and that was about it – he could take or leave the Pokémon part, though Marinette had loved it). He dropped a kiss against the dusting of black hair and winked at Marinette. “And there’s _three_ of us.”

Marinette snorted. She loved Haley – of course she did, she was her mother – but she sincerely doubted the three-month-old would be of any use against an army of eighteen kwamis. Haley would be about as useful as Plagg, who would have forgone the fight in favor of his favorite perch: curled up on the fridge with a few wheels of cheese.

“We got this, darning,” he said. She glanced back at the living room. All appeared quiet, but she’d been living with kwamis long enough to know that that meant nothing. “Ready? On three?”

“We are so gonna die,” she groaned. Her grip tightened on the body pillow in the hand not holding the door – a turquoise snake that had replaced the cat when it had finally worn out. “Ok, on three. One…two…”

Luka threw the door open before she could get to three, ripping Haley from the björn to hold her high above his head. Marinette gawked at him as he shouted, “Ok, nobody move! I’ve got a baby and I’m not afraid to use her!”

“Luka Couffaine, what the hell?!” Marinette screeched, dashing from the bedroom to rescue her baby. Haley squirmed, the beginnings of a whimpering cry rising from her. Marinette glared at her husband as she laid the baby against her shoulder, shushing her. “It took me a good hour to get her down!”

“That’ssss playing dirty, Masssster!” Sass shouted, flying out from behind the couch.

“How could you use Haley against us?!” Tikki cried, flying over to Marinette’s shoulder and cooing at the squirming Haley. Haley’s blue eyes blinked open and stared at Tikki in delighted wonder, and the kwami giggled back at her.

“He used the baby – he forfeits!” Kaalki said as he appeared from the couch, a pillow held between his hooves. Ziggy appeared next to him, holding his own pillow.

“It’s cheating!” Ziggy added. Kaalki nodded, and the two bumped hooves. Marinette rolled her eyes as she rested a hand against the back of Haley’s head, shushing her again.

“I think the pillow fight is off, guys,” she sighed. Eighteen disappointed groans greeted her as kwamis appeared from all over the room.

“Awwwwwww!!!!!!!” Duusu whined, zipping around Marinette’s head. “But we still get cookies, Mistress Marinette? You make the best cookies – oh, please, say we can still get cookies!”

Marinette laughed and poked Duusu’s stomach, making the peafowl giggle. She flew up to her cheek and nuzzled her, and Marinette dropped a kiss against her head. She smiled and said, “Of course you still get cookies, Duusu. You all know none of us want to deal with a Tikki denied her cookies.”

“We win the pillow fight by default!” Stompp said, landing on Luka’s shoulder. He huffed out a snort, and Luka chuckled as he scratched behind his horns. “You used Haley against us, Master, so we win by default.”

“Little guy, I just wanted to crash on the couch and enjoy a movie with my wife,” he said. “You guys are the ones who demanded the pillow fight.”

“But –” Duusu started, and he shrugged.

“I’m old,” he said. Marinette rolled her eyes. Twenty-eight wasn’t _old_, especially when you lived with immortal gods. “I don’t have the energy for pillow fights anymore. I’m more a snuggle-on-the-couch speed now.”

“You’ve been a snuggler since we were teenagers,” Marinette chided. She leaned up to kiss his cheek, and he grinned at her. “And I side with the kwamis. You cheated – so you get the snacks. Extra cookies.”

“Hey – you’re supposed to be on my side!” he said.

“I’m always on your side,” she said, “but you woke the baby and made us lose the pillow fight. Ladybug doesn’t lose, Strings.”

“Shall I asssssissst, Massster?” Sass asked from his other shoulder, tail swishing against his back. Haley reached for him, and Luka chuckled as he floated over to rest on Haley’s head.

“I got it,” he said. He kissed Marinette before kissing Haley’s head, right behind where Sass had landed. She giggled and squirmed, reaching for him, and he smiled as he took her hand and kissed her tiny palm. He looked up at Marinette and smiled. “Pick something good. I’ll be out in a minute.”

Marinette’s grin turned wicked.

“Lights Out – just for you!” she called, and he groaned.

He _hated_ horror movies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Headcanon: Juleka is the Goth Girl (canon), but Luka is a horror movie WHIMP (headcanon; also Marinette takes full advantage of this because snuggles). More on this to come. ;P


	23. 23 Oct: "You can't give more than yourself."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's their first anniversary, and they both think they have the perfect gift.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “You can’t give more than yourself.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: More domestic fluff. Sorry for the missed update yesterday, y’all. The doc was trying a different eyedrop, and apparently I’m allergic to it. I did not have the energy or ability to mess with this yesterday. >< (Posting this one now; will post today’s later tonight.)

A slow smile curled her lips as she stared at the sink counter. Beside her, Tikki let out an excited giggle.

“Does it mean what I think it means?” her kwami asked. Marinette took a shaky breath and looked at her.

“It means…” she said slowly, fighting her own giggle, “…I think I know what I’m getting Luka for our first anniversary.”

– V –

Luka was excited when he arrived home. He had been thrumming with energy all day, waiting for the moment he could walk through the door to their flat. It was their first anniversary, and he had found the _perfect_ gift for his adored wife. (He was actually very excited to give it to her: she was the gift-giver of the two of them, and he was always ridiculously proud when he could surprise her in turn.)

He paused inside the door, taking a deep breath. The flat smelled _delicious_. Marinette poked her head out from the kitchen, and he grinned at the flour dusting her cheeks.

“Luka!” she cried, her voice scolding. “You’re early!”

“Apparently I was getting obnoxious,” he said, pulling her into his arms and dipping down for a kiss. “Jules kicked me out of the studio with instructions to _go see my damn wife already_.”

“But dinner’s not ready yet, and I’m not dressed, and oh my God I have flour in my hair, don’t I?” she squeaked, reaching up a hand to ruffle through her short hair. He chuckled and rubbed his thumb against her cheek, wiping away some of the flour that was definitely also in her hair.

“You look perfect,” he said. He pulled her closer, stealing another kiss while she was distracted. “And as for dinner…it smells amazing, but I’d be happy with –”

The timer went off, and she yelped as she pulled away from him. He followed her into the kitchen, smiling at the chaos around them.

“You hold that thought,” she called, bending into the oven. His eyes raked over her backside, and she turned to send a playful glare his way. “I’m the dessert course, not the main event.”

His head fell back, cackling as he leaned against the counter. He flashed her a grin and said, “Darning, you’re _always_ the main event.”

She bumped her hip against his as she placed their dinner on the counter. It looked and smelled amazing: a heart-shaped galette her father would be proud of. Roasted asparagus was arranged on the pan like laurels around the galette, which was filled with squash, sausage, and cheese. He leaned over to take another whiff, and she laughed as he bent around her. His arms wrapped around her middle, his chin resting on her shoulder, and he sighed happily.

“I’d still be happy with having you for dinner, but that does smell amazing,” he said. She swatted his arm and leaned back against him.

“I told you: I’m dessert,” she giggled. She turned in his arms, grinning up at him. “I have the _best_ present for you. You’re gonna love it.”

“If you’re dessert, I think I will,” he said with a wink. “You can’t give more than yourself.”

She snorted and swatted at him again, but he just chuckled and gave her another kiss.

“Can I change?” she asked against his lips. “I have to get your gift, and I need to change before dinner gets cold –”

“Turn the oven off and leave it in to keep warm,” he said, his hands sliding down to her hips. “I think I want dessert first.”

“Luka, _no_,” she huffed as he ducked down to her neck. “That’s how you burn things! And I had a plan!”

“Plans can be changed,” he murmured. “Besides, I want my gift. Didn’t you say you’re my gift?”

She rolled her eyes as her arms came up to wrap around his neck.

“No, you assumed that,” she chided. “Horn dog.”

He snorted, pressing his face against her neck.

“You mean there’s more than this amazing dinner and dessert?” he asked. “And here I was, so excited to give you your present. You’re gonna outdo me again, aren’t you?”

“Maybe,” she giggled, and she squeaked as he lifted her onto the counter. “Luka, dinner!”

“I’m trying to enjoy it,” he quipped. She rolled her eyes.

“At least put the pan back in the oven!” she huffed. He leaned back to lift an eyebrow at her, and she glared at him. “I don’t want it to get cold! Go on – put it back!”

“If it means dessert first, then yes, ma’am,” he said, pulling the oven open and grabbing the pan. He bent down to slide the galette back in the oven when he paused, his eyes widening at the pan still inside. He glanced up at her to find a pleased smirk had curled her lips, and he felt a slightly manic laugh leave him as he pulled out the pan with a single bun on it.

“Marinette?” he asked, but when he looked back at her she had pulled off her apron. Beneath it was a t-shirt that had a picture of an egg with _incubating_ written beneath it. His eyes widened, and she shrugged.

“I couldn’t decide between the _bun in the oven_ joke or the egg joke,” she said. She squealed as he tossed the bun on the counter and scooped her up, spinning her around with an excited whoop.

Oh, yeah. She definitely outdid him again.


	24. 24 Oct: "Patience...is not something I'm known for."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette doodles on Luka's arm. He's not allowed to peek. Juleka thinks they're gross.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Patience…is not something I’m known for.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Juleka Couffaine  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Anarka is totally the type who goes to Wales on holiday, sees a ridiculous name she can barely pronounce or spell in a castle somewhere, and decides it’ll be her kid’s middle name someday. (Don’t even get me started on Wales/Welsh. I may be stupid proud of my Irish heritage, but I’m STUPID proud of my Welsh heritage. Just be glad I used the name I did and not, y’know, Cadwgan or Ercwlff or Gwythyr or any other name that looks like the alphabet threw up on you. xD Hwyl!)

“Hold still,” she ordered, glancing up from his arm with an annoyed look. He would have returned it in full, but she had ordered him not to look – so Juleka got the full brunt of his annoyed stare on the other side of the room. She stuck her tongue out at him before looking back to her book.

“Patience…is not something I’m known for,” he grumbled, and she pinched his wrist when he tried to sulk. He sat up straighter as Juleka snorted.

“You’re one of the most laid-back guys I know,” she said. “_Patience_ is practically your middle name, dumbass.”

“No, it’s not,” Luka huffed. “It’s _Llewellyn_.”

Marinette paused, the sharpie hovering over his arm as she gawked at him.

“Wait, seriously?” she asked. He glanced back at her, grinning, and she was too surprised to reprimand him. “Your middle name is Lew…L…Lowell…what is it again?”

“_Llewellyn_,” he said. “It’s Welsh.”

“…I thought you were Scottish?” she asked, blinking, and he grinned at her.

“We are,” he said, “but Wales isn’t that far off in the scope of things. Ma went on a trip when she was young and explored some old castle and saw the name there. It’s from some famous Welsh king and means leader. Or lion. Or both.”.

“That…really doesn’t surprise me,” Marinette said, laughing. “I don’t think Ma can surprise me anymore, actually. That’s just so _her_.”

She hummed as she looked back at his arm.

“Luka Llewellyn Couffaine,” she said. His lips quirked at the brush of the sharpie against his skin. “I like it.”

“It’s dumb, just like its owner,” Juleka said (her name wasn’t any better: _Juleka Rhiannon Couffaine_, because it was also Welsh and their ma loved Stevie Nicks). Marinette looked up to say something to that, but she saw him looking again and thwapped him with the sharpie. He grinned as he looked back at his sister – who laughed at the black smudge on his nose.

“Stop!” she said. “No peeking!”

“But you’re so talented,” he wheedled. “I wanna see.”

“You’ll see it soon enough,” she huffed. In truth, he’d already seen part of it: he was the one who had asked her to design the tattoo, after all. He would have been fine just going to the artist, getting it done, and surprising her with the finished result later, but she had wanted to do a trial run. To better visualize it, she had claimed.

(He was pretty sure she had just wanted to spend the afternoon holding his hand. Not that he was complaining, mind.)

“It’s gonna look sick,” Juleka commented, arching her neck to get a better look at his arm. He tossed his hoodie at her, and she stuck her tongue out at him again.

“If I don’t get to peek, neither do you,” he said. Marinette tugged on his wrist, and his eye twitched as he fought the urge to look back at her. She tugged again, and he frowned. “Mari, I am _not_ looking – you keep pinching me every time I do.”

“Look at me, then, not your arm,” she said, something in her voice making him desperately want to face her. His eyebrows rose and he glanced at her, and she reached up to turn his head more fully in her direction. She leaned forward and kissed him, and he grinned against her lips. She smirked at him when she leaned back. “Sorry. I just really wanted to kiss you. I’m still not done, though.”

“Kissing me or drawing on me?” he asked, and she giggled as she kissed him again.

“Both?” she asked. He wrapped his fingers around the back of her neck and pulled her back towards him, but the kiss was interrupted by Juleka chucking his hoodie back at them.

“Gross – get a room!” she called.

“We have a room,” Luka said, looking back at her. Marinette giggled as she returned her attention to his arm. The strokes of the sharpie tickled, but there was something soothing about it, as well. “We are, in fact, in that room.”

Juleka rolled her eyes and stood, walking over to the partition.

“I wanna see it when it’s done. Go be gross in your own room,” she said, sliding the partition shut. He laughed, fighting the urge to look back at Marinette. (She was focusing on his arm again, and if he looked at her he’d definitely be peeking.)

“Alone at last,” he said, louder than was probably necessary.

“I can hear you smacking!” Juleka groused. He felt the sharpie make a jagged line on his arm as Marinette snorted, but he was too busy laughing to really pay that much attention to it. The mistake was probably both their faults: they were both snickering at Juleka’s antics.

“J-Juleka!” Marinette whined. She looked up at him, and he couldn’t help it: he had to face her again.

“Well, if she’s just going to assume we’re doing it anyway…” he murmured, resting his forehead against her own. She sighed and tapped his arm.

“It’s pretty much done anyway,” she sighed. “What do you think?”

He looked down at his forearm, where a splay of cherry blossoms – her signature flower – swirled on a branch along his skin. A snake curled around the branch, and he was fairly certain that was a ladybug resting on its head. (It was only half of the sleeve, though – the other half was a surprise he hadn’t told her about yet. He couldn’t wait to see her face when it was done.) He pulled her towards him, kissing her again.

“I love it,” he said, and maybe he made an exaggerated smacking noise as he kissed her again. Just to make Juleka groan.


	25. 25 Oct: "I could really eat something."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette stays up all night finishing a project. She might have forgotten Luka was there by the time she's done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “I could really eat something.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Y’all, it has been a WEEK. On top of everything else, apparently my surge protector died during one of the last storms/power outages (we get them a lot – if it’s not a storm it’s some drunk asshole from one of the three bars across the street crashing into the transformer at the top of the street), so my laptop battery had just enough juice for the tech guy to tell me it was probably the surge protector before it died. Picked a new one up last night, but that means another double update today. I tried writing this last night, but it was getting late and I have no promises on what this actually is. Goofball trash, I think. I was about as sleep-drunk as Mari is here. (Today’s prompt will be up tonight sometime.)

“Aaaaand…done!” Marinette declared with a flourish, kicking away from her desk and leaning back in her chair, arching her spine to stretch out the multiple kinks that had accrued over the past…she glanced at the clock, her eyes squinting as the numbers blurred. God, how long had she been at it, anyway? The sun had still been up when she had first sat down at her desk – she knew that much.

“All finished?”

She jumped so hard she actually fell out of the chair. There was a scurrying from the other side of the room as she groaned, and the next thing she knew Luka was kneeling beside her. His hands hovered uncertainly as he inspected her for damage, as if he was afraid of causing more harm if he touched her.

“Are you ok?” he asked, worry clear in his voice. She laughed sheepishly – more of a manic giggle, really – and rubbed the back of her head.

“I…kind of forgot you were here?” she asked, grinning up at him. He chuckled and shook his head, holding out his hands to help her up. She pulled him down to the floor instead, smiling as she cuddled against him. “Or I thought you were asleep, at least. Or…no, I definitely forgot you were here. I’m sorry.”

“It’s ok,” he laughed. “You were focusing pretty hard. I was trying to stay out of your way.”

“You’re never in my way,” she huffed. He smiled and kissed her forehead.

“That’s sweet, but you’re wrong and we both know it,” he said. She stuck her tongue out at him, and she squeaked when he kissed it.

“Luka! Gross!” she cried, sucking her tongue back into her mouth. He wondered if she realized how much she sounded like his sister then as he laughed. She rolled her eyes at him, and he ducked down to give her a kiss that found his tongue chasing her own into her mouth. She tried to grumble around the kiss, but it just came out as a sort of moan that had him chuckling again.

“How’s that any different?” he asked, and she huffed as she laid her head on his shoulder.

“Dunno,” she said, snuggling into him. “Too tired. It just is. Weirdo.”

“But I’m your weirdo,” he hummed, and she nodded firmly.

“Damn straight,” she said. Her stomach chose that moment to interrupt them, and she groaned. “Ugh. I’m so hungry. How late is it, anyway?”

“It’s almost three, darning,” he said, glancing at her clock. She groaned and pressed her face against his chest.

“I could really eat something,” she sighed. She peeked up at him. “Could you eat? I could eat.”

“I could sneak downstairs and get you something,” he said. “Your parents should be up soon, anyway.”

“…Papa might already be up,” she said. “There’s a big order due tomor…ugh, _today_ that he wanted to get an early start on. They…they know you’re still here, right? Oh my God. Did I just sneak a boy in?”

“To be fair, I was invited over for dinner last night,” he said. “I just…never left.”

“Did I sneak my boyfriend in my room all night?” she squeaked.

“They knew I was here,” he said. “Mari, calm down. Don’t spiral. They knew I was here. They know I wouldn’t do anything. They trust me.”

“Oh my God my boyfriend just spent the night and I spent the whole time ignoring him,” she whined, thumping her head against his chest. “What kind of teenager am I?”

“The responsible kind?” he laughed, but she just groaned again. “Mari, relax. It’s fine. You had to finish that project – I was just here for moral support, anyway. Plus I _really_ didn’t want to walk home in the rain.”

“I called you _gross_,” she wailed. His eyebrows soared at that.

“…well, Jules would agree with you,” he said with a shrug. “By nature of my being a guy and her brother, I think I’m automatically _gross_.”

“But you’re my gross! I like your gross!” she said. He brushed his hand over her forehead, lifting her bangs to look at her eyes.

“Darning, are you sure you need food? I think you need sleep,” he said. She tightened her arms around him.

“Too tired to move,” she grumped. “Adrenaline rush fading. Staying right here. Comfy.”

“I can put you in your bed,” he offered, but she shook her head.

“Comfy,” she said again. He rubbed her back and dropped another kiss on her head.

“You won’t be once you fall asleep like this. Your floor’s not as great as your bed,” he said. He should know – he’d crashed there enough times when she was in the middle of a creative flurry. The chaise did fine on most occasions, but her bed was the best option.

“But you’re not in my bed,” she whined.

“I could be,” he said without thinking. He froze as soon as the words left his mouth, mentally kicking himself. True, he’d been in her bed plenty of times (almost as much as she’d been in his), but never together. Not like…he groaned and dropped his head against her own. He needed sleep, too. He really hoped Tom wouldn’t freak if he came to check on them.

“I like that idea,” she mumbled, already half-asleep. He stood carefully, scooping her up with him and carrying her towards her bed. He wasn’t quite sure how he managed to climb the ladder without dropping her, but a short moment later she was tucked under her blanket and he was curled around her. She sighed contentedly and rolled into him. “Yeah. I like this idea.”

“Sleep, darning,” he said, but she was already out before he’d removed his lips from her cheek. He smiled, tucking her head under his own, and followed her into dreamland.


	26. 26 Oct: "You keep me warm."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She's so cold. She shouldn't be this cold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “You keep me warm.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: *whistles innocently* The uh…the other option for this involved cocoa, snuggles, and jokes about snakes/ladybugs not doing well in winter. (You know what’s good mood music? “We’ll Meet Along The Way” by HEM.)
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9l5T92T26kk

She was shivering. She couldn’t stop. She was just so _cold_.

It all seemed irrelevant by this point, though.

“Did…did we win?” she choked out, the question harsher than it needed to be with the way she broke into a cough at the end. Viperion’s grip on her tightened, and she curled closer into him. “Vi…Vip…did we win?”

“Yeah, Bug,” he said, his voice barely audible. She thought he might be shaking, too, but that could just be how tightly he was holding her. He sounded so far away – how could he sound so far away when her head was resting on his shoulder? “We won.”

“Good,” she coughed. “I’m so cold.”

He didn’t say anything. He held her closer, and she swallowed thickly. Her mouth tasted weird. Metallicy.

Some part of her mind, as distant as he sounded, knew that wasn’t good.

“You keep me warm?” she mumbled. She felt something brush against her hair. Heard, or thought she heard, how his breath shook when he inhaled.

“I’ll keep you warm,” he said. His fingers felt like they could bruise her shoulder. “I’ll always keep you warm, darning.”

“We won?” she asked again. Just for clarification. Just to be sure.

She had to be sure.

“Yeah,” he said. “We won.”

“Good,” she said. Her head laid against his shoulder. Her eyes closed.

She could rest now, knowing it was finally over.

– V –

Viperion couldn’t breathe. Ladybug had been shaking so bad, but as her eyes closed and her body stilled he realized just how frozen he was.

“…Ladybug?” he asked. He didn’t know why he did it. He knew…but he didn’t know…he had to be sure… “Darning. Lady…”

He blinked against the flash of pink light. Tikki appeared unconscious on Marinette’s stomach.

She looked like she was sleeping.

But he couldn’t hear anything. Couldn’t…

“Marinette,” he said. He swallowed – his mouth felt like cotton. His fingers dug into her shoulders. He shook her. Roughly. “_Marinette_.”

“Viperion!”

Chat Noir’s run faltered into uneasy steps as he approached them. As he saw the girl in his arms.

“Marinette?” Chat asked. He sounded confused. Viperion felt confused – except he wasn’t. He knew – he _knew_ – but he couldn’t understand. “What the hell was she doing out here? Is she ok? Viperion –”

And then Chat stopped talking. Probably about the same time he saw the kwami on Marinette’s stomach.

The battle had been too long. Too hard. She had barely had time to cast her Miraculous cure before she’d collapsed, and he had already had to run away from the fight to recharge. He had been running back when he saw her fall – he hadn’t made a reset point yet. She had already been…had already…and he had no second chance to give her. She…and where had Chat been? Chasing down Mayura, he knew, even as Ladybug had torn the Butterfly Miraculous from Hawkmoth’s throat. And then it had all been over, and…

“What happened?” Chat demanded, his voice harsh and unforgiving. He didn’t know. He didn’t know what to tell him because _he hadn’t been there_. He… “Viperion, why isn’t she moving? Why…use your power! Viperion, take us back - fix this! Stop it from…Marinette! Marinette, wake up!”

He yanked her away from Chat’s reaching hands, hissing as he held her closer. His eyes snapped up, glaring murder at Chat – but the anger crumpled the moment he saw the lost desperation shining in his eyes. He was sure it matched his own expression.

“I…I can’t,” he said, choked out. “I was…I had to recharge. I didn’t see…I wasn’t…”

“The Rabbit,” Chat said suddenly, looking around desperately. “We need to find Alix. We need to get to the Miracle Box and get the Rabbit Miraculous to Alix. She can go back – she can warn us. She can stop this. She can…”

“She can’t save her,” Viperion whispered. “If she could…why wasn’t she here? Why didn’t she already stop it?”

“Because we’re at the moment before it changed – we have to send her back, to…damn it, Viperion, stop looking at me like that! She’s not gone – she can’t be gone! We have to fix this! Paris needs Ladybug! I need Ladybug!” Chat shouted, and Viperion felt his fingers lock again.

“And I need Marinette!” he snapped back, and Chat rocked back on his heels. He tried to take a deep breath, but he felt like his throat was closing on him. It was shuddering as his lungs expanded unevenly. He felt like he was drowning – like he had fallen into the January Seine, and icy water was filling his lungs. “I…I’m sorry. I can’t…she can’t…”

Chat’s hand on his shoulder was steady. A calming anchor to focus on instead of…

She was _so cold_…

“Luka, focus on me,” Chat said. Viperion raised his head slowly, a different kind of shock taking him. It wasn’t that he was surprised Chat knew his civilian identity: Adrien had been the one to suggest him for the Snake Miraculous in the first place, so of course Chat Noir would know. But he had broken the cardinal rule: never use civilian names while in the suit. Never let on that you knew who any of your teammates were.

Chat looked so focused, though. Determined. Like the world wasn’t falling apart around him. Viperion swallowed and tried to take another breath, his eyes blinking slowly with the action. When he looked back at Chat Noir, the roaring in his ears had dimmed to an aching pulse.

“We’re going to find the Miracle Box. We’re going to get the Rabbit Miraculous to Alix, and Bunnix is going to save her,” Chat said, squeezing his shoulder. “She’s not gone. We haven’t lost yet.”

No, he supposed they hadn’t.

He had told her they had won, after all.

And how could they have won if she wasn’t there to celebrate the victory?

“Right,” Viperion said, nodding slowly. He held Marinette closer and stood, cradling her against his body. “It’s in her room. Follow me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Do a month of fluffy Lukanette trash," she says. "Don't hit 'em with any angst," she says. "The fourth was an accident," she says. *goes ahead and does it anyway*


	27. 27 Oct: "Can you wait for me?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette said she'd marry him tonight. Well, looks like they're getting married tonight, then. (Cont. of 10/16 & 10/19. Now with 100% less angst.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Can you wait for me?”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Team Miraculous, the Parents, Pretty Much Everyone How Did Alya Do That  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen (some language)  
Notes/Warnings: Continuation of 10/19. How’s that Corpse Bride song go? “A wedding – a wedding! We’re going to have a wedding!” (Ignored my timer a bit because I wanted to actually have the wedding in this and it ran away from me – let’s just say I’m making up for yesterday? I'm sorry y'all know by now I like to hurt people. xD )

“Can you wait for me?”

Alya glanced at the door leading below deck, biting her lower lip between her teeth.

“How soon can you get here?” she asked. Adrien sighed from the other end. The connection was horrible – she could only guess how far away he was from that alone.

“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” he said. She sighed and waved her arm above her head, catching Ivan’s attention. She gestured to the door, mouthed _STALL_, and turned back to survey the rest of the deck.

“I’ll hold them off as long as I can. Just hurry,” she said. Her eyes widened as they landed on Max. “Or…where are you, exactly? I might have an idea.”

– V –

It was amazing how quickly it all came together.

As Marinette had run towards the dance floor to grab Alya and Nino, he had pulled out his phone and called his mother. She had started screaming as soon as he’d asked: yes, of course she’d do it, she already had the legal documents (he wasn’t the only one who saw the houseboat and had a spur-of-the-moment, hey-this-would-be-romantic proposal in mind), and everything would be ready by the time they got there. She’d even told him to just worry about getting Marinette there in one piece: she’d call Tom and Sabine, and he could already hear Rose screaming in the background as she ordered Juleka to _grab the tulle – no, not that one, the pink-white one, with the glitter – AND CANDLES!_ He’d looked up as screaming broke out on the dance floor – the happy kind, not the _Someone Had a Bad Day in Paris_ kind – and the crowd separated to make room for Alya, who was spinning Marinette in dizzying circles. Nino was jumping behind them, pumping his fists in the air. As soon as Alya had put her back down, she’d turned that dazzling smile back on him and raced back into his arms.

He was vaguely aware of the deejay calling out his congratulations and dedicating a happy, fast-paced song to the happy couple as Marinette started kissing him again.

“Ma’s getting everything together,” he said against her mouth – she wouldn’t stop kissing him long enough to get a word in. Not that he was complaining. His hands landed on her hips, his thumbs rubbing little circles against her waistband. The gesture was grounding – he needed grounding. His head was spinning with it all.

“Parents! Oh, crap –” Marinette squeaked, reaching for her purse and phone. He laughed, squeezing her tight.

“Ma’s calling them,” he said. She rolled her eyes.

“Like that’ll keep them from killing me if I don’t call myself,” she said, the phone already against her ear. Her eyes lit up when her mother answered. “Mom! Can you get to the Liberty? As soon as you can? Yes – yes, we are! I know. I know. Yes! Maman, I’m sure!”

She laughed as he kissed her again. He could hear Tom in the background, shouting about cake. Marinette had to shout to be heard over him – something about the dress, yes _that_ dress, in the back of her closet. After another moment, the call ended and Marinette grabbed his face with both hands. He’d spend the rest of the night kissing her, if she’d let him. The rest of their lives.

“C’mon – they’re meeting us there,” she said after she pulled away. Alya and Nino had already made their way back to them – thankfully the excitement had seemed to sober Nino up, at least a little. Alya’s thumbs were flying over her phone as she barked out orders. Marinette rolled her eyes before looking back at him. She grabbed his hand and he chuckled as she went to kiss him again.

“Are we really doing this?” he asked. Alya snorted.

“I’ve already sent out the SOS – you’re damn right we’re doing it,” she said. She looked up from her phone, her eyes narrowing at them. No – at Marinette’s hands. “Wait. Where’s the ring? I know you’ve been carrying it around, Couffaine. Where’s the ring?”

He rolled his eyes and pulled it out from his pocket. Did everyone know he’d been carrying it around?

“She ran off to get you before I could give it to her,” he said. He opened the box and held it up for Marinette, who stopped breathing the moment she saw it. It was simple: three guitar strings wrapped in a looping knot, with a small diamond nestled safely in the center. Her eyes widened as she held up her hand, and he kissed her again when he slid it on her finger.

“Luka…is that…are those…are those guitar strings?” she asked, and he chuckled as he nodded.

“Not just guitar strings, darning,” he said. At her look, he smiled. “They’re the ones I was using when we first met. When I first wrote your song. I kept them after they wore out.”

“You kept…” she mumbled, and he shrugged.

“You and Adrien had that whole lucky charm bracelet thing,” he said. “I thought…once we got together, they kind of felt like my own lucky charm. I’ve got a matching ring at home made from the same strings.”

“And you say you’re not romantic,” she breathed. His fingers tangled in her hair, pulling her closer.

“I’m plenty romantic,” he said, making her giggle. “What I said is I’m better with music than words. Which is true.”

“That –” she tried to say, but Alya was tugging at her. She looked up, and Alya held her purse out for her.

“Ok, so, you’ll have the rest of the night for that – we gotta get to the boat first,” she said, making them laugh. “Look. You take Nino and head over. I’ll swing by your flat for the ring. Just…don’t actually do anything until we get there, ok?”

“No promises,” Luka said, nuzzling against Marinette’s neck. Alya thwapped the back of his head.

“You’ve waited this long – another hour or two to finalize everything won’t kill you!” she said. She pulled Marinette off his lap and shoved her at Nino, who immediately crushed her in a bear hug.

“My baby girl’s all grown up and getting married!” he cried, squeezing her tight. He shot Alya a look over her shoulder. “Don’t you go getting any ideas, though. I’m not quite ready right.”

“Oh, please,” Alya snorted. “You’ll be lucky if I marry you before thirty. All right – let’s go!”

– V –

When they had arrived at the Liberty, they had been stunned to find it a bustling hub of activity.

Anarka was barking orders from the prow. Tom and Sabine were setting up a table with an assortment of desserts (including a cake Luka and Marinette both knew they’d had no time to prepare and yet was still beautiful). Ivan, Max, and Kim were clearing off the deck while Mylène, Rose, and Juleka hung fairy lights, swaths of tulle and ribbon, and chains of flowers. Alix raced past the gangway as they boarded, winking as she tossed a fistful of flower petals above their heads.

“Be back with her soon!” she called as she grabbed Marinette’s hand and pulled her below decks. Juleka and Rose ran after them with strict orders that Luka was to remain above decks, and the next thing Luka and Nino knew they were being pulled over to the guys to help finish getting ready. Luka was surprised to find Penny passing him with Sabine in a dash below decks, and an excited shout announced Jagged’s presence as his father scooped him up in a hug.

He didn’t know how they had done it in such a short time, but _everyone_ was there.

When Alya arrived a short while later with Luka’s ring and a Miracle Box full of kwamis, things just got nuttier.

“What?” Alya asked as she handed him the box, Sass zipping past her to burrow against his chosen’s neck as he cheered his congratulations. “You think any of them were going to sit this out?”

“Master Fu would have a heart attack if he were here,” Luka chuckled. Xuppu zipped past him to crash into Kim, the two jumping and cheering with their reunion. Max, who was trying to steady the ladder Kim was perched on, shouted at them to calm down before they got hurt. Alya rolled her eyes.

“The old Guardians can kiss my ass,” she huffed. “That secret identity nonsense was bullshit, anyway. Besides, all the members of Team Miraculous are already here, so why not include our kwamis? Now, where’s our girl?”

She disappeared below deck with Tikki. The next hour was a chaotic blur as finishing touches were made. There was one point where Alya had set Ivan against the door to keep Marinette from coming out, but before Luka could question her she was grabbing Max and Kaalki and sending Pegasus off somewhere. Luka hadn’t really been able to pay them much attention, though, as the next thing he knew Ivan was falling away from the door as Juleka, Rose, Mylène, and Alix charged out. Marinette stood behind them, laughing at the sight before her – and none of the rest of it really seemed to matter after that once he saw her. Her eyes rose from their friends, and she gasped as she took in the transformed deck. He stood at the other end, with his mother, and when her eyes locked on his a brilliant smile broke out on her face. She took a step towards him – tried to run towards him, actually – but Sabine kept a firm hand on her arm, holding her back. He took a step towards her instead, but a shout from above was the only warning he got before a portal opened above his head and Chat Noir crashed into him.

“I MADE IT!” Chat cried, hopping up and digging his knees into Luka’s back. Luka groaned beneath him, and he laughed nervously as he quickly got off of him. “Whoops – sorry, Luka!”

“That is why you _always_ look before you portal,” Pegasus said as he hopped out with Kagami. Chat Noir’s transformation dropped, and Plagg – after snatching his cheese from Adrien – flew over to where the other kwamis were gathered. Kaalki joined them a moment later, munching on a granola square. There were quite a few things Luka had in mind to tell Adrien as he sat up, but the words died in his throat when Marinette offered him a hand and he looked up at her.

He hadn’t seen the dress she was wearing before. It was a pale pink – almost white – that glowed silver in the moonlight. It flared out from her bust, fluttering around her knees, with cherry blossoms embroidered along the side. Her bare shoulders were covered with a lacy black shawl – one he recognized from Juleka’s closet. A delicate wreath of flowers, one he’d seen on Rose when she left on some dates with Juleka, was on her head. She grinned down at him and wiggled her fingers, and as he took her hand he realized she was barefoot.

“Are you ready?” she asked. He grinned as he pulled her over to Anarka – Tom and Sabine were standing to her one side, Jagged and Penny the other. The kwamis sat on one of the tables that had pushed off to the side, and their friends gathered around behind them. He bent down, giving her a quick kiss that had Jagged laughing about how they weren’t at that part yet. Penny elbowed him in the ribs and told him to shut up.

“I’ve been ready forever, darning,” he said. She slipped her ring off and handed it back to him with a wink, and he chuckled as he handed her his own. He’d be getting it back soon enough, anyway. They looked up at his mother, who nodded approvingly.

“All right, mateys!” Anarka called, clapping her hands together. “Let’s do this!”


	28. 28 Oct: "Enough!  I heard enough!"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sabine can hear the kids all the way downstairs. She should have known better than to leave them alone with Mario Kart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Enough! I heard enough!”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: Did y’all know Mario Kart has a mobile version? ‘Cause I didn’t. (I’m not the biggest video gamer (I’m all about them tabletops), but when I do I have four staples: Zelda, Mario Kart, Mortal Kombat, and Pokémon.)

“What…that…you cheated!”

“How did I cheat? I did not cheat!”

“You totally cheated – what the hell?! Where did that…how did you even…you are such a cheater!”

Sabine’s eyebrows rose so high she felt like her eyes would pop out. She could hear the kids arguing halfway up the stairs, and now as she stood outside the door she hesitated.

“You’re just upset because I’ve never played before and I kicked your ass.”

“You did _not_ kick my ass – you _cheated!”_

Sabine took a deep, steadying breath: her normally docile daughter became an entirely different creature when the competitive rush of video games hit her. It was something she got from her father. She opened the door.

“Ok, ok, what’s going on in…here…?” she asked, pausing as she entered and took in the sight before her. Marinette was standing on the couch, her foot pressing into a laughing Luka’s head. He was holding his controller out as she simultaneously tried to grab for it and shove him into the couch with her foot. They were still yelling at each other as Toad danced through his victory lap on the TV screen behind them. “What on earth are you kids yelling about?”

They both froze when they saw her.

“Mama! It’s – ack!” Marinette screeched as Luka lost his balance, falling back onto the couch. Marinette toppled on top of him, both teens disappearing from Sabine’s sight, and she shrieked again as he started laughing.

“Oh, this is _much_ better,” Sabine heard him say. She walked over to the couch, folding her arms over her chest as she stared down at them. He had wrapped his arms around Marinette, who was squirming against him as she continued squawking about how he was a cheater, and cheater’s forfeit, and he needed to let her go because _he was a cheater and cheaters don’t deserve cuddles_. He grinned up at Sabine. “I like Gamer Mari. She’s feisty.”

“Ok, enough,” Sabine laughed, holding a hand up at the teens. “I’ve heard enough. We could hear you shouting downstairs, and I just wanted to make sure nobody was dead.”

“He will be if he doesn’t let go – I’m gonna kick your ass next round, cheater!” Marinette snapped.

“Marinette!” Sabine reprimanded, and her daughter winced before shooting her a guilty smile.

“Sorry, Mama,” she said. “I…uh…I’m going to kick his butt in a bit of friendly competition as soon as he lets me up?”

Sabine sighed and turned to go.

“I’ll let your father know Luka’s staying for dinner,” she said. Lord only knew how long their little bout of _friendly competition_ was going to last. “Don’t kill him too bad, dear. Luka…don’t go easy on her.”

“Oh, I’m going to annihilate you. Your ass is _mine_,” she heard Marinette hiss as she opened the door.

“My ass was already yours – it can take it,” Luka quipped, and Sabine paused as she closed the door behind her. She bit her lip, trying to stifle her laugh, and decided maybe it was best she didn’t tell Tom what the kids were doing. As she went back down to the bakery, she made a mental note to have a _Talk_ with Marinette once Luka went home. Now that she was dating an older boy and all.

Back in the living room, Marinette snatched up her controller and went back to the race screen. When Luka had told her he’d never really played video games before, she had assumed she’d have to go easy on him. She had suggested Mario Kart instead of Ultimate Mecha Strike because it was easier – or at least it _could _be. She hadn’t expected Luka to actually be _good_ – but, she supposed, years of playing guitar had probably given his fingers the dexterity needed to quickly maneuver the controls. It didn’t help that he had picked one of the faster racers (she had expected him to pick Larry, if for no other reason than the blue mohawk), managed to hit her with no less than four red shells, and had jumped the shortcut on the track. He’d had a string of good luck, and it had pissed her the hell off.

“Ok,” she said, an evil grin curling her lips as she selected Rainbow Road. “Let’s see how you handle this one.”

“I never knew you were such a video game nut,” he chuckled, kicking his feet up onto her lap. Well, his _legs_ – his feet dangled over the arm of the couch. She tried to push them off, but he just put them right back on her lap. She gave him an annoyed look.

“_Cheaters don’t get cuddles,_” she reminded him. He laughed and pushed himself up, and she squeaked as he was suddenly up against her, their noses practically touching. “Ch-cheaters don’t get kisses, either!”

“What about adorable boyfriends who just have really good luck?” he asked. She rolled her eyes as he pecked her lips. “One more for luck?”

“Tch, like you need it,” she huffed as she pushed him back. He laughed as he settled back against the couch, his legs still in her lap. He grabbed his controller and grinned at her.

“Then one more when I kick your ass a second time?” he asked, and she rolled her eyes as she hunched over. She made sure her elbow dug against his bone a little, just because. She shot him a grin as he winced.

“We’ll see,” she tsked. She hit start, jabbing her thumb against the controller as soon as the countdown hit _two_. “Maybe I’ll demand more than a kiss when I kick yours.”

He looked entirely too pleased by that option.

“Game on.”


	29. 29 Oct: "I'm doing this for you!"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka's last delivery of the night is at Le Grand Paris, to...Jagged Stone and Marinette?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “I’m doing this for you.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Jagged Stone  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: Y’all it’s been a DAY. Like I’m getting so sick of DAYS. It started by literally running over a skunk at 5:30A – and I didn’t hit him, but he sprayed the heck out of my car. So. Then it’s Taco Tuesday at work – and the Health Inspector surprised us (which we were fine, but he caught me temping taco meat and was like, “I’m so glad to see you temping that!” To which I just looked at him and went “We’re supposed to temp everything? How many people have you caught not temping things? I’m scared now?”). It continued with getting a call on the drive home that mum’s wheelchair crashed into our oven and broke it (which is like…ugh, honestly getting a new oven might be quicker and cheaper? Just the part is $200 and won’t be in until Thanksgiving?). Ended with the kitchen sink going crazy (after just having the faucet replaced last weekend now we have to get the plumber back out because PIPES and DRAINAGE). Like Adulting sucks. I’m a baker/cook and my kitchen is flipping me off. Soooo y’all know that Tumblr post about Jagged and Mari jamming to ABBA? Y’all I needed So Much ABBA tonight. This is self-indulgent, ABBA-induced goofball trash. Because ABBA is magic and no one will convince me otherwise.

“I’m doing this for you!”

“No, you’re not – you’re doing this for your guilty conscience! And pizza?! What the hell kind of apology is _pizza?!”_

Luka glanced at his phone, checking the time. He sighed as he looked back at the couple arguing in front of him. He still had one more delivery to make, and they were making him late…

“The kind you do when your girlfriend is obsessed with the Princess Diaries and you’re trying to be _romantic!”_

“M&Ms in marinara is NOT ROMANTIC!”

The pizza was already paid for. The shitty tip he was bound to get from this mess wasn’t even worth it by this point.

He just needed them to, y’know, _take the damn pizza_.

“Um…” he tried to cut in, but they kept arguing over him. “Excuse me? I have another delivery that’s getting cold, so…do you want the pizza or not?”

“See? You’re ruining his night, too! Take your damn pizza and go, asshole!” the blonde shouted, and Luka sighed as the man ripped the box out of his hands. He waved and climbed back onto his bike when the woman shouted again. “Trevor! Aren’t you going to tip the kid?! You are such a loser!”

“No, really, it’s ok…” Luka tried to say, but the blonde had already grabbed Trevor’s wallet, pulled out whatever bills he had, and shoved them into his hand. He blinked at Trevor, who just groaned and waved him off. “Um…”

“No, kid, just take it and go,” Trevor sighed. “Babe, please, just –”

Luka pocketed the cash without checking and sped off, unwilling to spend another moment bearing witness to Trevor’s imploding love life.

He almost felt guilty, in retrospect, because of how well his own had been going lately – _almost_.

He was at Le Grande Paris about five minutes later, and as he grabbed the pizza and left his bike with the doorman, he realized he had never been more glad to see the ostentatious hotel. He checked his phone for the room number, waving at Jenni at the front desk as he headed for the lifts, and a short while later he was knocking on the door of a suite near the top floor. Loud music could be heard blaring on the other side, and he wondered who he was delivering for this time. You never knew with this place.

Though he certainly hadn’t expected Penny Rolling to open the door. She looked just as surprised to see him.

“Luka?” she asked, and he waved.

“Hi, Pen…” he trailed off as he caught sight of the scene behind her. He was fairly certain his jaw had dropped, and if he had still been paying attention to Penny he would have seen her biting her lip to hold back a laugh.

Inside the room was the most bizarre, most beautiful sight he had ever seen. Jagged was sitting at his piano, pounding away on the keys. His infamous Eiffel Tower sunglasses were on his face, and he was beaming at _Marinette_, who was dancing on top of the piano while singing ABBA’s “Lay All Your Love On Me”. She was barefoot and dressed in her pink and white-spotted pajamas, her hair wrapped up in a towel, with gaudy, golden star-shaped sunglasses (whose lenses were tinted the deep purple of Jagged’s hair) on her face. A bright pink feather boa was wrapped around her neck, and the hand not raised in the air was holding a hairbrush to her mouth like a microphone.

Luka Couffaine decided right then and there that, no matter what, he was marrying that girl.

“I still don’t know what you’ve done with me – a grown-up woman should never fall so easily!” Marinette sang, spinning with a grace she usually only possessed in her super suit. Her face lit up when she stopped and saw him at the door. A delighted laugh escaped her as Jagged continued the verse, winking at him, and she pointed straight at him as she belted out the chorus. “Don’t go wasting your emotion – lay all your love on me! Don’t go sharing your devotion – lay all your love on me!”

Penny caught the pizza as Marinette leapt from the piano and raced into his arms, crashing into him with enough force to knock the sunglasses from her face. He caught them easily, laughing as he placed them back on her nose.

“You took _forever_,” she huffed. His eyebrows rose at that. “I was getting bored waiting!”

“Oi – are you calling me boring?!” Jagged asked, walking over. Marinette stuck her tongue out at him.

“Neither of you looked bored to me,” Luka laughed. “What are you doing here, darning?”

Jagged looked like he was about to squeal. Penny shoved the pizza at him and told him to settle down.

“Jagged needs some new outfits for his next tour, but he’s only got this weekend in town – so we’re having an Emergency Planning Session,” Marinette said. Luka didn’t look convinced.

“And the ABBA?” he asked, and Jagged lightly punched his shoulder.

“Oi – _never_ dis ABBA! Gets the creative juices flowing!” he said. Luka nodded. “Besides, we were getting hungry. Our girl here insisted on pizza. Makes sense now.”

“I knew your shift was almost over and thought you’d maybe like to stay?” she asked. Her grin turned wicked as she squeezed him. “You haven’t heard my rendition of _Super Trouper_ yet!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Luka checks his pocket later and it's like a $500 tip. He uses it to buy Marinette some super pricey fabric she'd been lamenting over not being able to afford. Thanks, Trevor.


	30. 30 Oct: "I'm with you, you know that."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka uses that tip to buy Marinette some fabric, but bumps into a familiar face at the fabric store.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “I’m with you, you know that.”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng  
Rating: T / PG-13 / Teen  
Notes/Warnings: I almost tied this in with the Drunk!Mari chapters. There was this line I really liked about how “Luka didn’t trust things to work out. Happiness just didn’t always work for him.” Then I saw a few “Not an Anti Luka Post I Swear!”-Anti Luka posts on Tumblr, and fuck it. Our boi deserves all the happiness without You Know Who shitting all over him. (Sorry not sorry I like what I like and I like Luka. No apologies, no exceptions.) That being said this now pairs with yesterday’s, because apparently I also liked Trevor. (Double post to end the month because we were out most of last night looking at ovens. Good news is fixing the darn thing is cheaper than they initially told us – better news is it’ll be done Monday. :D (Final post will be later tonight~)

Luka couldn’t keep the grin off his face as he watched the video for probably the hundredth time. Between the Ladyblog’s fans and Jagged’s fans, it was damn near going viral.

He had taken it Friday night – or had started to, at least. There was a point when his beautiful, amazing, incredibly smart, and incredibly talented girlfriend had grabbed his hand, yanked him in the screen to dance with him, and Penny had caught his flying phone and had recorded the rest. That was his favorite part of the video, because at the end of it all – after she had crooned (and that was baffling enough – who knew Marinette could _croon?_) at him, “So I’ll be there when you arrive – the sight of you will prove to me I’m still alive! And when you take me in your arms and hold me tight…” – she had pulled him close and kissed him, and it had been one hell of a kiss. It was the kind of kiss he was bound to write songs about someday.

The video cut off shortly after the kiss, with Marinette grinning at him as he stared back at her like a dope with the dumbest smile on his face. Jagged was in the background, hooting and clapping and shouting, “Get it, Mari! That’s my girl!” while Penny snickered behind the camera. Penny had, of course, sent the video to Jagged, who had immediately posted it on every social media outlet he had, which had led to Alya posting it on the Ladyblog with the caption _ASDFAJSDKLJG THAT’S MY BEST FRIEND GET IT GIRL_.

It had been a really good night.

Especially since it had led to standing in a fabric store with his aforementioned beautiful, amazing, incredibly smart, and incredibly talented girlfriend two hours after Jagged had boarded his jet on Sunday. He hung behind her, holding various bolts of fabric she was considering, as she did her thing. Penny had entrusted her with a charge card to purchase the materials she’d need for Jagged’s outfits, and while she had assured him he didn’t have to accompany her to the fabric store (“Luka, you’ll be bored out of your mind!” “Yeah, but you break out into ABBA when you’re bored, and I like when you break out into ABBA.”), he had been more than happy to volunteer as her bag boy. Or just company. (He loved watching her at work, honestly. She was in her element at the fabric store, and he could wax poetic for hours over how beautiful she was when caught up in her creative passion.)

Her sudden gasp made him look up from his phone, and he smiled as he saw her caressing a bolt of dark velvet. It was a midnight blue, almost black, and shimmered like a clear winter sky. She practically moaned as she ran her hand over it, and he chuckled as he put his phone back in his pocket. She was bound to start salivating at any moment.

“It’s gorgeous, but I don’t recall seeing any sketches that could use it,” he said, bumping her shoulder with his own. “Unless you got a new idea?”

“No, this wouldn’t be for Uncle J,” Marinette sighed. She pulled her lower lip between her teeth, running her hand over the fabric again. “It…actually, I do have an idea for it, but…”

“But…?” he pressed. She winced when she glanced at the sticker on the end of the bolt.

There was a dance a month or so away, one she knew Luka would probably hate but had still hoped he’d agree to go with her to. She’d already designed the dress, and the fabric would be _perfect_ for it. Just…

“It’s way out of my price range,” she sighed. “No way I could afford it.”

“How much would you need?” he asked.

“Enough,” she sighed. He gave her a look, and she sighed as she told him. He nodded, doing some quick mental math, and took the bolt from her. She squawked after him. “L-Luka!”

“I’ll be back,” he called. She gawked after him as he disappeared down the next aisle. A short while later found him at the register, waiting with the cut fabric in his arms.

“I’m with you,” he heard a familiar voice hiss in front of him. “You _know_ that!”

“I’m not sure I do, _Trevor_,” an equally familiar voice snapped back. His eyes widened as he looked at the couple in front of him.

No freakin’ way…

The blonde and her apparently-not-as-estranged-as-he-would-have-guessed paramour from Friday night were in line ahead of him. Trevor looked as exasperated as he had the other night, and the blonde looked just as pissed.

“You were totally checking her out,” the blonde hissed. “I _saw_ you!”

“Brigette, if I was checking her out, would I be standing here buying your craft supplies? Would I have spent all weekend sucking up to you in an attempt to win you back?” Trevor sighed, and the blonde – Brigette – scoffed.

“Well, maybe – apparently you can’t help yourself! You…hey. Hey! Aren’t you the guy from Jagged Stone’s ABBA video?” Brigette asked as she spotted Luka. He was sure he looked about as gobsmacked as he felt – she had given him all the cash in her maybe-boyfriend’s wallet (five hundred euros’ worth, he had been oddly horrified and delighted to find), which was the only reason he was able to get the fabric Marinette had been drooling over, but _that_ was what she recognized him from?

“Uh…yes?” he asked. Brigette laughed, clapping delightedly as she grinned at him.

“Your girlfriend is awesome! See, Trev?” she asked, her demeanor flipping a one-eighty as she roughly jabbed Trevor in the chest. Trevor hardly noticed – he was squinting at Luka suspiciously, as if he recognized him from something other than Jagged Stone’s ABBA video. Something like an unintended five hundred euro tip. “_That’s_ a boyfriend!”

“For the love of…” Trevor groaned, slapping his palm against his forehead, but Luka was saved answering by Marinette running up to him.

“There you are!” she said, but she froze when she saw the fabric in his hands. “L-Luka, no! You can’t – it’s way too expensive!”

“It’s ok,” he said, turning away from the couple – Brigette was pointing and gawking at Marinette. He shot what was probably a guilty smile at Trevor. “I got a _really_ good tip the other night. I can afford it.”

“_That’s_ where I know you from!” Trevor said, snapping his fingers. Luka winced and nodded. He grinned at Marinette.

“Actually, I guess I should say Trevor can afford it?” he joked. Marinette frowned at him, but her eyes widened as Brigette slapped the back of Trevor’s head.

“See? _See?_ _That’s_ a boyfriend!” she snapped. She smiled at Luka. “You are so sweet. This asshole would have just blown it on his car, I’m sure.”

“I would not –” Trevor tried to argue, but she slapped him again.

“Shut up and pay the lady,” she said, nodding to the cashier. She winked at Marinette. “That one’s a keeper. You two are so cute!”

Marinette watched, dumbfounded, as Brigette grabbed her bag and Trevor’s arm and stalked out of the store, sniping at him the entire way. She shook her head as Luka handed the cashier the fabric, trying again to protest that it was too much. He kissed her cheek as she sighed.

“It was a _really _good tip, Mari,” he said. He thanked the cashier as she handed him his change and gave the bag to Marinette. “I even have more than enough left over to take you to dinner, if you’d like.”

“Luka…” she sighed, but he kissed her cheek again as she handed her own purchases over to the cashier.

“It was an unexpected, pleasant surprise,” he said. “Let’s just thank Trevor and let me spoil you?”


	31. 31 Oct: "Scared, me?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luka is a Horror Movie Wuss. Marinette finds it adorable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: “Scared, me?”  
Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug  
Character/Pairing: Luka Couffaine/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Juleka Couffaine/Rose Lavillant  
Rating: K Plus / PG / Most Ages  
Notes/Warnings: Remember that “Luka Couffaine hates horror movies – more on that later” note? xD I was amused by the idea that Juleka is Juleka and Luka would hate horror movies. (Personally I love a good horror movie – I live for jump scares and mindfuckery.) Also, since it’s my last chance to say it: thank y’all so much for reading & all the feedback. I love that y’all have been enjoying these (mostly) silly little stories. I think I’m taking November off prompt challenges and focusing on some WIPs I’ve been kicking around. I don’t usually post the WIPs until they’re complete (there’s a bunch of one shots, but I have two big chapter fics in the works), but I’ll probably be doing some Six Sentence Sundays and WIP Wednesdays until they’re up over on Tumblrland. Anyway, thanks again for reading – happy Halloween, y ¡feliz Día de los Muertos!

Luka Couffaine was a total wimp, and Marinette Dupain-Cheng found it _adorable._

He had faced worse as Viperion – done worse as Silencer – but he still jumped at horror movies. Which…it wasn’t even a horror movie. It was _Hocus Pocus_, which…y’know. Wasn’t scary. At all. But he had still hunkered down in the deck chair behind her, the blanket tucked over his head and his face pressed into her shoulder. His arms tightened around her waist as Billy Butcherson burst from his grave, and she snickered as she felt him wince. Oh, but she was a horrible girlfriend…

“Are you actually scared right now?” she snickered as Max, Allison, and Dani screamed.

“Scared, me?” he mumbled from her shoulder, but then Billy was out of his grave and he was ducking his head again.

“Lu,” Juleka said, rolling her eyes as she chucked some popcorn at them. Marinette gave her a Look, and she shrugged. It was her Sibling Right to mock him for this, after all. “Stop being such a wuss.”

“Dead things are supposed to stay dead, Jules,” he harrumphed, his voice muffled by her shoulder. Juleka snickered as she looked back at the mast, where the movie was playing.

“Good thing we didn’t put in the zombie movie,” she said, and Luka tensed around Marinette.

“_Dead things are supposed to stay dead, Juleka!”_ he shouted into her shoulder. She reached up and threaded her fingers through his hair, patting his head sympathetically.

“Poor baby,” she giggled. He gave her a squeeze.

“You’re supposed to be on _my_ side, Mari,” he grumbled.

“I’m always on your side,” she said. She squirmed against him, and she felt his lips pull into a smile. “Quite literally, right now. I just think it’s adorable that you find this scary.”

“Thank God we didn’t put in _Lights Out_,” Rose said. She looked like she wanted to turn the movie off for Luka’s sake, but neither Juleka nor Marinette would let her.

“Oh, it’s totally going in next,” Juleka said, grabbing more popcorn. “That one’s great. Luka won’t sleep for a week.”

“I hate you,” he grumbled as she cackled. Marinette scratched at his scalp, and he sighed as he peeked up at her from her shoulder. “My tough guy image is ruined, isn’t it?”

“It’s endearing,” she giggled, kissing his forehead. She didn’t have the heart to tell him he never really had a _tough guy_ image anyway. “I don’t really like scary movies, either. I just don’t think this one’s very scary.”

“There are witches who come back from the dead to eat children,” he deadpanned. “How is that not scary?”

“Because Sarah’s an idiot, Mary’s comic relief, and Winnifred is…” Juleka paused, searching for the right word.

“Ladybug putting up with Chat Noir and Roi Singe on a bad night,” Marinette deadpanned, and Luka pressed his face against her shoulder again – only this time he was trying to smother his laughter.

“Exactly!” Rose squealed, bouncing. Juleka moved the popcorn before she could upend it.

“It’s _spoopy_, not spooky,” Juleka said, “and you’re a wimp.”

“I’m not a wimp!” he snapped. He winced again as Zachary was run over by the bus. “…ok, I’m kind of a wimp.”

“I don’t mind it,” Marinette whispered to him, turning slightly to curl against him. He hummed, the new angle allowing him to press his face against her neck. She giggled as he pressed a kiss against her pulse. “I’m enjoying the cuddles. I almost want her to swap the movies now.”

“Ugh,” he groaned, laying his head on her shoulder. “I’m out if you put that one in.”

“Wuss!” Juleka called. Marinette giggled and tangled her fingers through his hair again. He looked up at her, and she pulled back slightly to kiss him properly.

“I’ll protect you,” she cooed. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng, scary movie shield and security blanket extraordinaire.”

“Or we could just go watch _Stardust_ in my room,” he said. “There’s witches in that one.”

“Halloween is for horror, Lu!” Juleka called. She tossed more popcorn at him.

“Juleka!” Marinette whined as some of the kernels fell down her shirt and settled in her bra. Luka’s eyebrows soared as she dug them out.

“Um…” he said, leaning back – which maybe wasn’t the best idea, as the shirt she was wearing was cut lower than her usual shirt and she was pulling it away for better access to the offending snack.

“What?” she asked, looking up at him, and her eyes widened as she realized what she was doing. “O-oh! Um…sorry?”

They were both surprised Officer Raincomprix didn’t come running at how loud Rose squealed, and Juleka collapsed against her, clutching her sides as she howled with laughter. Luka grabbed a fistful of candy corn and pelted her with it, but that didn’t stop her.

“Why did double date movie nights ever sound like a good idea?” he sighed, lying his head back on Marinette’s shoulder. He glanced up at her and smirked, leaning up to peck a kiss against the underside of her jaw. “Cute bra, by the way.”


End file.
